Nonstop flight route between Guarulhos (near São Paulo), São Paulo (state), Brazil and Upington, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU), Guarulhos (near São Paulo), São Paulo (state), Brazil and Upington Airport (UTN), Upington, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,168 miles (or 6,708 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 São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport and Upington 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 São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport and Upington 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 São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU):

• In 2010, the airport served more than 26.8 million passengers, an increase of 24% over 2009 and passenger volumes were 31% in excess of its capacity rated at 20.5 million per year at its present configuration.
• In Brazil the airport was ranked first in terms of transported passengers, aircraft operations, and cargo handled in 2012, placing it as the busiest airport in Latin America by passenger traffic.
• The furthest airport from São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU) is Minami-Daito Airport (MMD), which is nearly antipodal to São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (meaning São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Minami-Daito Airport), and is located 12,218 miles (19,663 kilometers) away in Minami Daito, Okinawa, Japan.
• However, Infraero experienced many legal and bureaucratic difficulties, which prevented most of these improvements from being completed on schedule.
• São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport handled 36,460,923 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport", another name for GRU is "Aeroporto Internacional de São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro".
• Gol Airlines and TAM Airlines offer for their passengers free bus transfers between Guarulhos and Congonhas airports at regular times.
• São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU) has 2 runways.
• In order to relieve the acute overcrowding at Terminals 1 and 2, Infraero announced on May 17, 2011 that the former cargo terminals of defunct airlines VASP and Transbrasil, later used by Federal Agencies, would undergo renovations and adaptations for use as domestic passenger terminals with remote boarding.
• The closest airport to São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU) is São Paulo/Congonhas Airport (CGH), which is located only 18 miles (28 kilometers) SW of GRU.

Facts about Upington Airport (UTN):

• The closest airport to Upington Airport (UTN) is Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of UTN.
• Upington Airport (UTN) has 3 runways.
• Upington Airport serves as an international cargo hub.
• From August 1976 to December 1996, South African Airways made use of Upington as a refuelling station for two weekly scheduled Boeing 747 flights to London and Zurich.
• The furthest airport from Upington Airport (UTN) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is nearly antipodal to Upington Airport (meaning Upington Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Princeville Airport), and is located 12,007 miles (19,323 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.