Nonstop flight route between Groton, Connecticut, United States and Fairbanks, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Groton-New London Airport (GON), Groton, Connecticut, United States and Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,260 miles (or 5,246 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 Groton-New London Airport and Eielson Air Force 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 Groton-New London Airport and Eielson Air Force Base. 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 Groton-New London Airport (GON):

• In March 1944, station personnel consisted of 87 officers and 678 enlisted men with barracks for 114 officers and 1,091 men.
• Groton-New London Airport (GON) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Groton-New London Airport (GON) is Elizabeth Field (FID), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) S of GON.
• Because of Groton-New London Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Groton-New London 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.
• In 1980, the name of the airport changed to Groton-New London Airport.
• The furthest airport from Groton-New London Airport (GON) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,794 miles (18,980 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):

• The host unit at Eielson is the 354th Fighter Wing assigned to the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
• The closest airport to Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) NW of EIL.
• For the next 34 years, the 5010th served as host-unit at Eielson.
• The furthest airport from Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,295 miles (16,568 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Eielson AFB was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field.
• The 6th SW flew RC–135 strategic reconnaissance missions with an assigned squadron, and, with KC–135s deployed to Eielson from SAC, AFRES, and the ANG, conducted Alaska Tanker Task Force missions to support reconnaissance and numerous exercises for the Air Force and Navy.
• The 375th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, from the 308th Bombardment Group at Tinker AFB Oklahoma, arrived at Eielson on 5 March 1949.
• On 7 June 1943, the Western Defense Command ordered construction of a new airfield near present-day Fort Wainwright, then an Army airfield named after Major Arthur Ladd.
• Headquarters USAF General Order 2, dated 13 January 1948, redesignated Mile 26 as Eielson AFB.