Nonstop flight route between Groton, Connecticut, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GON to THU:
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- About this route
- GON Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about GON
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to GON
- List of Nearest Airports to GON
- Map of Furthest Airports from GON
- List of Furthest Airports from GON
- 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 Groton-New London Airport (GON), Groton, Connecticut, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,434 miles (or 3,917 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 relatively short distance between Groton-New London Airport and Thule Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GON / KGON |
| Airport Name: | Groton-New London Airport |
| Location: | Groton, Connecticut, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 41°19'47"N by 72°2'42"W |
| Area Served: | Groton, Connecticut |
| Operator/Owner: | Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 9 feet (3 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GON |
| More Information: | GON Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| 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 Groton-New London Airport (GON):
- 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 January 1944, the USAAF turned the airfield to the United States Navy.
- 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.
- Over the years, and usually no more than one at a time, various domestic airlines served the airport, including Pan Am Clipper Connection, NewAir, Allegheny, Piedmont, and Pilgrim Airlines.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- Originally established as a Strategic Air Command installation, Thule would periodically serve as a dispersal base for B-36 Peacemaker and B-47 Stratojet aircraft during the 1950s, as well as providing an ideal site to test the operability and maintainability of these weapon systems in extreme cold weather.
- In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
- Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
- A delegation from NATO's Parliamentary Assembly visited Thule in early September 2010 and were told by the base commander that, at that time, approximately 600 personnel were serving at Thule, a mix of mostly U.S.
- Thule Air Base is the U.S.
- 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.
- The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag Dannebrog must be side by side with Stars and Stripes on the base.
- After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
