Nonstop flight route between Grand Island, Nebraska, United States and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI), Grand Island, Nebraska, United States and Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,127 miles (or 14,688 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport and Essendon 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport and Essendon 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI):

• Central Nebraska Regional Airport was selected to be a new Chinook Helicopter Base.
• Central Nebraska Regional Airport is a public airport three miles northeast of Grand Island, in Hall County, Nebraska.
• The facility was formerly Grand Island Army Airfield.
• Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) is Hastings Municipal Airport (HSI), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) SSW of GRI.
• The furthest airport from Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,617 miles (17,087 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.

Facts about Essendon Airport (MEB):

• International flights departed mainly from Sydney during Essendon's years of operation, and there were regular daily flights between the two largest metropolitan areas in Australia.
• The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
• The furthest airport from Essendon Airport (MEB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Essendon Airport (meaning Essendon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,192 miles (19,620 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• In 1959 Cabinet approved the acquisition of 2,167 ha in Tullamarine for the purpose of a new international airport, which began construction in the 1960s and was ready to handle aircraft by 1967, but not passenger flights.
• The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions.
• Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
• Because of Essendon Airport's relatively low elevation of 282 feet, planes can take off or land at Essendon 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 addition to being known as "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".
• The airfield itself also has undergone a major upgrade with the installation of lighting and signage systems to bring the airport to International Civil Aviation Organization standards.