Nonstop flight route between Hat Yai, Songkhla Province, Thailand and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hat Yai International Airport (HDY), Hat Yai, Songkhla Province, Thailand and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,236 miles (or 8,427 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 Hat Yai International Airport and King Shaka International, 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 Hat Yai International Airport and King Shaka International. 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 Hat Yai International Airport (HDY):

• Hat Yai International Airport handled 2,465,370 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Hat Yai International Airport (HDY) is Sultan Abdul Halim Airport (AOR), which is located 51 miles (82 kilometers) S of HDY.
• Because of Hat Yai International Airport's relatively low elevation of 90 feet, planes can take off or land at Hat Yai 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.
• The runway can handle 30 flights per hour and its durability is rated at PCN 60/F/C/X/T.
• Hat Yai International Airport (HDY) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Hat Yai International Airport", another name for HDY is "ท่าอากาศยานหาดใหญ่".
• The furthest airport from Hat Yai International Airport (HDY) is Cap. FAP José A. Quiñones González International Airport (CIX), which is nearly antipodal to Hat Yai International Airport (meaning Hat Yai International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap. FAP José A. Quiñones González International Airport), and is located 12,419 miles (19,986 kilometers) away in Chiclayo, Peru.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• On 8 December 2009, it was reported that "King Shaka International Airport" was indeed the most popular name for the new airport.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• It is unclear what the fate of the existing Durban International Airport will be now that KSIA is complete.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• On 27 January 2014 the worlds largest passenger aircraft, an Airbus A380-800 of British Airways landed at KSIA becoming the first A380 to do so.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• One of the objectives of the cargo terminal is to recapture local air freight traffic from JNB.
• Mount Moreland, a small community located 2.6 km south of the airport, is an important roosting site for the European Barn Swallow.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.