Nonstop flight route between Hamilton, New Zealand and Gweru, Zimbabwe:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hamilton International Airport (HLZ), Hamilton, New Zealand and Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE), Gweru, Zimbabwe would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,887 miles (or 12,692 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 Hamilton International Airport and Gweru-Thornhill Air Base, 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 Hamilton International Airport and Gweru-Thornhill Air Base. 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 Hamilton International Airport (HLZ):

• In 1994, the airport became a terminal for Trans Tasman air routes, with charter flights provided on Boeing 727s by Kiwi International Airlines of New Zealand which served Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.
• The Waikato Aero Club has been based at Hamilton Airport since 1933.
• As the world prepared for war, it became clear that a landing strip needed to be constructed in the Hamilton area.
• Because of Hamilton International Airport's relatively low elevation of 172 feet, planes can take off or land at Hamilton 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 closest airport to Hamilton International Airport (HLZ) is Matamata Airport (MTA), which is located 24 miles (39 kilometers) ENE of HLZ.
• Hamilton International Airport (HLZ) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Hamilton International Airport (HLZ) is Córdoba Airport (ODB), which is nearly antipodal to Hamilton International Airport (meaning Hamilton International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Córdoba Airport), and is located 12,427 miles (20,000 kilometers) away in Córdoba, Spain.
• A NZ$15.3 million terminal expansion begun in 2005 featured a 60 percent increase in floorspace with improved baggage handling areas, better international and domestic check-in space, and passenger security screening.
• In August 2011, approval was received by Hamilton International Airport to extend its runway up to 3,000 metres - the same size as secondary airports in other parts of the world, such as the Gold Coast.

Facts about Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE):

• Because of Gweru-Thornhill Air Base's high elevation of 4,680 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GWE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GWE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is nearly antipodal to Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (meaning Gweru-Thornhill Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Hilo International Airport), and is located 12,117 miles (19,500 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) is Masvingo Airport (MVZ), which is located 78 miles (125 kilometers) ESE of GWE.
• Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) has 2 runways.