Nonstop flight route between Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States and Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR), Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States and London Luton Airport (LTN), Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,800 miles (or 6,116 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 Gerald R. Ford International Airport and London Luton 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 Gerald R. Ford International Airport and London Luton 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 Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR):

• Because of Gerald R. Ford International Airport's relatively low elevation of 794 feet, planes can take off or land at Gerald R. Ford International 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.
• Until October 31, 2011 the airport was a focus city for Allegiant Air.
• The furthest airport from Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,165 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In April 2012 Frontier Airlines ended flights from Grand Rapids to Milwaukee.
• The closest airport to Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) is Park Township Airport (HLM), which is located 33 miles (53 kilometers) W of GRR.
• When new baggage screening regulations were introduced by the Transportation Security Administration in 2002, the airport was one of the first in the nation to conduct trials on the new screening machines.
• Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) has 3 runways.
• The airport has two aircraft spotter locations.
• In 1997 the new 8,500-foot runway 17/35 was added to allow the airport to continue operations during the $32 million reconstruction of runway 8R/26L, completed in 2001.

Facts about London Luton Airport (LTN):

• London Luton Airport (LTN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport recently featured in the series "Supersize Grime" which focused on the cleaning of an Airbus A321 at the Monarch Aircraft Engineering Ltd hangar 127.
• In order for the airport to expand further, the Department for Transport advised the airport authority to use the airport site more efficiently.
• London Luton Airport handled 9,697,944 passengers last year.
• In 1990, the airport was renamed London Luton Airport to re-emphasise the airport's proximity to the UK capital.
• The closest airport to London Luton Airport (LTN) is Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SSE of LTN.
• The furthest airport from London Luton Airport (LTN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,851 miles (19,072 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The original runways had been grass tracks 18/36 and 06/24, and then a concrete runway 08/26.
• In addition Monarch and Thomson Airways have their head offices located at the airport.
• Following the war, the land was returned to the local council which continued activity at the airport as a commercial operation.
• From the mid-1960s, executive aircraft have been based at the airport, initially operated by McAlpine Aviation.
• Because of London Luton Airport's relatively low elevation of 526 feet, planes can take off or land at London Luton 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.
• It became the operating base for charter airlines such as Autair, Euravia, Dan-Air and Monarch.