Nonstop flight route between Berlin, Germany and Desroches Island, Seychelles:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GWW to DES:
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- About this route
- GWW Airport Information
- DES Airport Information
- Facts about GWW
- Facts about DES
- Map of Nearest Airports to GWW
- List of Nearest Airports to GWW
- Map of Furthest Airports from GWW
- List of Furthest Airports from GWW
- Map of Nearest Airports to DES
- List of Nearest Airports to DES
- Map of Furthest Airports from DES
- List of Furthest Airports from DES
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW), Berlin, Germany and Desroches Island Airport (DES), Desroches Island, Seychelles would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,666 miles (or 7,510 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 Royal Air Force Station Gatow and Desroches Island 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 Royal Air Force Station Gatow and Desroches Island Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GWW / EDBG |
| Airport Name: | Royal Air Force Station Gatow |
| Location: | Berlin, Germany |
| GPS Coordinates: | 52°28'27"N by 13°8'17"E |
| Operator/Owner: | formerly: Ministry of Defence, now: Bundeswehr |
| Airport Type: | Military (airport no longer in operation) |
| Elevation: | 161 feet (49 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GWW |
| More Information: | GWW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | DES / FSDR |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Desroches Island, Seychelles |
| GPS Coordinates: | 5°41'41"S by 53°39'1"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Island Deveoplment Company (IDC) |
| Airport Type: | Private |
| Elevation: | 10 feet (3 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from DES |
| More Information: | DES Maps & Info |
Facts about Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW):
- Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) currently has only 1 runway.
- RAF Gatow has the unique and unlikely distinction of being the base for the only known operational use of flying boats in central Europe, during the Berlin Blockade, on the nearby Großer Wannsee in the Havel river.
- RAF Gatow was also used as a civilian airport for a limited time.
- The closest airport to Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) is Berlin Tegel Airport (TXL), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NE of GWW.
- On 20 June 1980, the Royal Australian Air Force presented a Douglas Dakota to RAF Gatow in commemoration of its role.
- After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Chipmunk reconnaissance flights soon ceased and the two Chipmunks were flown to RAF Laarbruch, in Western Germany to await disposal action.
- The airfield was originally constructed in 1934 and 1935 by the Luftwaffe as a staff and technical college, Luftkriegsschule 2 Berlin-Gatow, in imitation of the Royal Air Force College at RAF Cranwell.
- The General-Steinhoff Kaserne is also home to the Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr, the museum of the Air Force which has many displays and much information on German military aviation and the history of the airfield.
- Because of Royal Air Force Station Gatow's relatively low elevation of 161 feet, planes can take off or land at Royal Air Force Station Gatow 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 furthest airport from Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,694 miles (18,819 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- In November 1948, the latest RAF transport aircraft, the Handley Page Hastings, was added to the squadrons flying into RAF Gatow and some aircrews and aircraft were redeployed to train replacement aircrews.
Facts about Desroches Island Airport (DES):
- The closest airport to Desroches Island Airport (DES) is Seychelles International Airport (SEZ), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of DES.
- Because of Desroches Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Desroches Island 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 "Desroches Island Airport", another name for DES is "Desroches Island".
- Desroches Island Airport (DES) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Desroches Island Airport (DES) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,058 miles (17,796 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
