Nonstop flight route between Gainesville, Texas, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GLE to THU:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- GLE Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about GLE
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to GLE
- List of Nearest Airports to GLE
- Map of Furthest Airports from GLE
- List of Furthest Airports from GLE
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE), Gainesville, Texas, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,097 miles (or 4,984 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 Gainesville Municipal Airport and Thule Air Base, 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 Gainesville Municipal Airport and Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GLE / KGLE |
| Airport Name: | Gainesville Municipal Airport |
| Location: | Gainesville, Texas, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°39'5"N by 97°11'48"W |
| Area Served: | Gainesville, Texas |
| Operator/Owner: | City of Gainesville |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 845 feet (258 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GLE |
| More Information: | GLE Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
|
| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE):
- Because of Gainesville Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 845 feet, planes can take off or land at Gainesville Municipal 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 airport was opened in August 1941 as Gainesville Army Airfield and was used by the United States Army Air Forces Third Air Force as a training base to provide photographic intelligence for air and ground forces.
- Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE) is North Texas Regional Airport (PNX), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) E of GLE.
- The furthest airport from Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,905 miles (17,550 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- Thule Air Base has served as the regional hub for nearby installations, including Cape Atholl, Camp Century, Camp TUTO, Sites 1 and 2, P-Mountain, J-Site, North and South Mountains, and a research rocket firing site.
- Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
- In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
- A board of Air Force officers headed by Gordon P.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
