Nonstop flight route between Gladstone, Queensland, Australia and Big Spring, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gladstone Airport (GLT), Gladstone, Queensland, Australia and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,045 miles (or 12,947 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 Gladstone Airport and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield, 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 Gladstone Airport and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield. 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 Gladstone Airport (GLT):

• The closest airport to Gladstone Airport (GLT) is Rockhampton Airport (ROK), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NW of GLT.
• Gladstone Airport (GLT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Gladstone Airport (GLT) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,918 miles (19,180 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• Because of Gladstone Airport's relatively low elevation of 59 feet, planes can take off or land at Gladstone 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.
• As of March 2008, QantasLink was scheduled to operate about 38 return services per week between Gladstone and Brisbane using Dash 8 aircraft with seating from 50 to 74 passengers.
• Buses operate between the town centre and the airport, but are only operational from Monday to Friday between 6am and 6pm.

Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• Construction of the Army Air Forces Bombardier School began on 15 May 1942, and the airfield received its first class of cadets on 16 September 1942.
• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The airfield was activated as Big Spring Air Force Base on 1 October 1951 by the United States Air Force Air Training Command and established the 3560th Pilot Training Wing.
• The base was declared surplus and was turned over to the War Assets Administration after being closed.
• The airfield and flight line was converted to an uncontrolled/UNICOM-only general aviation airport renamed Big Spring McMahon-Wrinkle Airport, serving the City of Big Spring.
• By the mid-1970s, the end of the Vietnam War, the associated financial costs of that conflict and related cuts in USAF force structure and future defense budgets meant a marked decrease in the need for Air Force pilots.
• Activated on 26 June 1942, the mission of Big Spring AAF was to train aviation cadets in high altitude precision bombing as bombardiers.
• In August 1972, ATC established a pilot instructor training course for Vietnamese Air Force instructors at Webb AFB, Texas.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.