Nonstop flight route between Groningen / Eelde, Netherlands and Decatur, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ), Groningen / Eelde, Netherlands and Decatur Airport (DEC), Decatur, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,287 miles (or 6,900 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 Groningen Airport Eelde and Decatur 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 Groningen Airport Eelde and Decatur 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 Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ):

• During World War II, between 1940 and 1945, the airport was occupied by the German Military.
• In 1933, the airport's name was changed into "NV Luchthaven Eelde".
• Groningen Airport Eelde handled 20,866 passengers last year.
• Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ) has 2 runways.
• The first landing of a European aeroplane took place on July 13, 1958.
• Because of Groningen Airport Eelde's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at Groningen Airport Eelde 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.
• With the airport becoming more crowded due to holiday flights, it was decided to join the two existing passenger halls together.
• The closest airport to Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ) is Emden Airport (EME), which is located 32 miles (52 kilometers) NE of GRQ.
• The furthest airport from Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,778 miles (18,956 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• On July 13, 1928 the community's council agrees on a proposal to allocate 'Hakenkampsveld', a 12 hectare terrain within the municipality of Eelde, as an airport.

Facts about Decatur Airport (DEC):

• Because of Decatur Airport's relatively low elevation of 682 feet, planes can take off or land at Decatur 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 Illinois Army National Guard has an Army Aviation Support Facility at the airport.
• The closest airport to Decatur Airport (DEC) is University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI), which is located 34 miles (55 kilometers) ENE of DEC.
• Decatur Airport (DEC) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Decatur Airport (DEC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,056 miles (17,793 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 1,232 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 672 in 2009 and 2,456 in 2010.