Nonstop flight route between Hambantota, Sri Lanka and Charlotte, North Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI), Hambantota, Sri Lanka and Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), Charlotte, North Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,341 miles (or 15,033 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 Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport and Charlotte Douglas International 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 Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport and Charlotte Douglas International 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 Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI):

• In addition to being known as "Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport", another name for HRI is "මත්තල රාජපක්ෂ ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළமத்தல ராஜபக்ஷ பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• The second stage of the HIA project expansion works at the airport is to be completed by 2015.
• The furthest airport from Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,719 miles (18,860 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• The closest airport to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Weerawila Airport (WRZ), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) ESE of HRI.
• On 16 October 2012, a Hawker Beechcraft B200 King Air registered AP-CAB, belonging to the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan landed on runway 23 at 12.38 PM local time becoming the first aircraft to land at the new airport as requested by the Rajapaksa regime.
• A new aerodrome designed to meet the ICAO specification for code 4F is to be built.
• Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport's relatively low elevation of 157 feet, planes can take off or land at Mattala Rajapaksa 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.
• On October 2012, the Super King 20 Test Aircraft, which belongs to the Pakistan Civil Aviation Department and features a dual engine, landed on the new runway to test the newly constructed runway and the instrumentation.
• The numbers given to the airport's sole runway is 05 and 23.
• Construction of phase one began on 27 November 2009 at Mattala.

Facts about Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT):

• Construction of Charlotte International's fourth runway began in the spring of 2007.
• The city received a $200,000 grant from the Works Progress Administration in 1930 to establish Charlotte's first municipal airport.
• A major renovation project in the late 1960s expanded the facility considerably.
• The closest airport to Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is Wilgrove Air Park (QWG), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) W of CLT.
• Two years later in 1969, a new enclosed concourse was built parallel to the center pier.
• The August 1, 2013 court date yielded a verdict that the transfer, should it occur, would need prior approval from the FAA, a division of the US Department of Transportation, currently headed by former Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx, who has officially recused himself from the matter.
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport handled 41,228,372 passengers last year.
• Because of Charlotte Douglas International Airport's relatively low elevation of 748 feet, planes can take off or land at Charlotte Douglas 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 furthest airport from Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,521 miles (18,541 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 1990, a new 80,000-square-foot international and commuter concourse opened, and in 1991 further expansion of the central terminal building continued, reflective of USAir's dominating presence at the airport.
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) has 4 runways.