Nonstop flight route between Berlin, Germany and Galle, Sri Lanka:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GWW to KCT:
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- About this route
- GWW Airport Information
- KCT Airport Information
- Facts about GWW
- Facts about KCT
- 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 KCT
- List of Nearest Airports to KCT
- Map of Furthest Airports from KCT
- List of Furthest Airports from KCT
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW), Berlin, Germany and Koggala Airport (KCT), Galle, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,938 miles (or 7,948 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 Koggala 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 Koggala 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: | KCT / VCCK |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Galle, Sri Lanka |
| GPS Coordinates: | 5°59'38"N by 80°19'14"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Sri Lanka Air Force |
| Airport Type: | Public / Military |
| Elevation: | 10 feet (3 meters) |
| View all routes: | Routes from KCT |
| More Information: | KCT Maps & Info |
Facts about Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW):
- 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.
- During the Berlin Airlift, the Station was modernised with a 2,000 yards long concrete runway, using 794 German workers, in March 1947.
- 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.
- To commemorate Australian participation in the Airlift, the Royal Australian Air Force presented RAF Gatow with a retired Douglas Dakota in the 1980s, to use as a gate guardian.
- Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- Alongside the Royal Air Force and various British civil aviation companies, the United States Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force and the South African Air Force all flew supplies into RAF Gatow during the Airlift.
- The closest military neighbour to RAF Gatow was a tank unit of the National People's Army of East Germany.
Facts about Koggala Airport (KCT):
- The furthest airport from Koggala Airport (KCT) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,683 miles (18,802 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
- Because of Koggala Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Koggala 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 Government of Sri Lanka expects to upgrade the Koggala airport to international standards as an alternative airport to the BIA.
- Prior to the Second World War, the lake at Koggala was used for seaplanes.
- Meanwhile, the tarmac surface of the land runway was developed.
- In addition to being known as "Koggala Airport", another name for KCT is "කොග්ගල ගුවන්තොටුපළ".
- The closest airport to Koggala Airport (KCT) is Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI), which is located 59 miles (95 kilometers) ENE of KCT.
- QEA and Imperial Airways flew Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats from Koggala lake to the Swan River at Perth, on what was at the time the world's longest non-stop air route.
- After the Japanese occupied the Malay Peninsula in 1942, the QEA/Imperial Airways flight from London to Sydney lost Singapore, its refueling point between Calcutta and Perth, Western Australia.
