Nonstop flight route between Hobbs, New Mexico, United States and Valenciennes, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lea County Regional Airport (HOB), Hobbs, New Mexico, United States and Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,171 miles (or 8,322 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 Lea County Regional Airport and Valenciennes-Denain 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 Lea County Regional Airport and Valenciennes-Denain 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 Lea County Regional Airport (HOB):

• Lea County Regional Airport (HOB) has 3 runways.
• The first air mail arrived in Hobbs via Continental Airlines in May 1940 which started passenger flights that year.
• The furthest airport from Lea County Regional Airport (HOB) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,218 miles (18,054 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Lea County Regional Airport is four miles west of Hobbs, in Lea County, New Mexico.
• Lea County Regional Airport was originally the Me-Tex Airport and opened as a commercial airport on July 23, 1937.
• The closest airport to Lea County Regional Airport (HOB) is Winkler County Airport (INK), which is located 63 miles (101 kilometers) S of HOB.

Facts about Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):

• It is known that Denain was used by the Royal Air Force, as it was assigned ALG "B-74".
• The furthest airport from Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The wartime air base is still evident with the 5500' concrete NE/SW runway remaining, complete with patched bomb craters and expansion joints allowing grass to grow between the concrete pads.
• C-47 Skytrain transports moved in and out of the American controlled airfield almost immediately after the runway was repaired, supplying the front line forces with the necessary materiel to support their advance.
• In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
• It appears that the Luftwaffe moved out of Denain in 1941 and the airfield was left unused.
• Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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 response to the interceptor attacks, Denain was attacked by USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauder medium bombers and P-47 Thunderbolts mostly with 500-pound General-Purpose bombs.
• The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.