Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Great Falls International Airport (GTF), Great Falls, Montana, United States and O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,804 miles (or 15,778 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 Great Falls International Airport and O. R. Tambo International 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 Great Falls International Airport and O. R. Tambo International 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 Great Falls International Airport (GTF):

• Malmstrom Air Force Base, home of the 341st Missile Wing of the Air Force Global Strike Command, is 10 miles east of GTF, on the east side of Great Falls.
• The furthest airport from Great Falls International Airport (GTF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,498 miles (16,896 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport.Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 143,811 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 146,438 in 2009 and 155,204 in 2010.
• Great Falls International Airport (GTF) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Great Falls International Airport (GTF) is Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) E of GTF.
• AvMax, a Calgary-based large jet maintenance and repair business, opened a large operation at GTF in 2006.
• In addition to being known as "Great Falls International Airport", another name for GTF is "(former Great Falls Army Airfield)".

Facts about O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB):

• O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "O. R. Tambo International Airport", another name for JNB is "Johannesburg International Airport".
• It was formerly officially known as Johannesburg International Airport and before that as Jan Smuts International Airport after South Africa's internationally renowned statesman by that name.
• It was used as a test airport for the Concorde during the 1970s, to determine how the aircraft would perform while taking off and landing at high altitude.
• O. R. Tambo International Airport handled 18,794,897 passengers last year.
• Critics noted the considerable expense involved in renaming the airport, and the decision to use a politician as the name would be obscure, confusing and in some instances, offensive.
• The closest airport to O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Rand Airport (QRA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SW of JNB.
• The furthest airport from O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,979 miles (19,279 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Because of O. R. Tambo International Airport's high elevation of 5,558 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at JNB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make JNB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.