Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Yanbu (Yenbo), Al Madinah, Saudi Arabia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Yanbu International Airport (YNB), Yanbu (Yenbo), Al Madinah, Saudi Arabia would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,514 miles (or 4,046 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Yanbu International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Yanbu International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E­3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.
• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located near Geilenkirchen, Germany.
• Surrounded by farmland and a natural woodland reserve, the base was originally built by the Royal Air Force after World War II and operated as RAF Geilenkirchen from 1953 onwards.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
• Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• The Component operates seventeen Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft all of which are based on the Boeing 707 airframe Trainer Cargo Aircraft but which have since been retired).

Facts about Yanbu International Airport (YNB):

• All the international destinations are serviced by foreign airlines.
• In addition to being known as "Yanbu International Airport", another name for YNB is "Prince Abdul Mohsin bin Abdulaziz Airport".
• The airport was upgraded in late 2009 to enable it to operate international flights with newly expanded arrival and departure lounges.
• Smoking is prohibited inside the terminal building.
• The closest airport to Yanbu International Airport (YNB) is Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport (MED), which is located 107 miles (172 kilometers) ENE of YNB.
• Because of Yanbu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Yanbu International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• The furthest airport from Yanbu International Airport (YNB) is Tureira Airport (ZTA), which is nearly antipodal to Yanbu International Airport (meaning Yanbu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tureira Airport), and is located 12,120 miles (19,504 kilometers) away in Tureia, Tuamotus, French Polynesia.
• Yanbu International Airport (YNB) currently has only 1 runway.