Nonstop flight route between Hambantota, Sri Lanka and Kampala, Uganda:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI), Hambantota, Sri Lanka and Kampala Airport (KLA), Kampala, Uganda would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,371 miles (or 5,425 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 Kampala 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 Kampala 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):

• On 24 January 2013, Sri Lanka Minister of Civil Aviation Piyankara Jayaratne said in parliament that the airport would be declared open on 18 March 2013.
• The second stage of the HIA project the construction will begin in 2013 and is to be completed by 2016.
• In addition to being known as "Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport", another name for HRI is "මත්තල රාජපක්ෂ ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළமத்தல ராஜபக்ஷ பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• The closest airport to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Weerawila Airport (WRZ), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) ESE of HRI.
• This project will have two phases, with the first phase expected to be completed by the end of October 2012.
• 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.
• 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.
• As announced earlier the airport was opened for flight operations on 18 March 2013.
• Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Domestic carriers Helitours and Cinnamon Air offer charter flights that connect the airport with Ratmalana Airport and Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo.
• Phase one began on 27 November 2009 at Mattala.

Facts about Kampala Airport (KLA):

• Kampala Airport, also known as Kololo Airstrip, was an airport in Uganda.
• The furthest airport from Kampala Airport (KLA) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,732 miles (18,880 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• Kololo Airstrip was constructed during 1936 at the instigation of Philip Euen Mitchell, Governor of Uganda 1935 – 1940.
• Possibly the last use of the airstrip by fixed-wing aircraft was in the mid-1970s by members of the Safari Rally Committee who obtained special consent to operate from the site with a Cessna 310.
• The closest airport to Kampala Airport (KLA) is Entebbe International Airport (EBB), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSW of KLA.
• In addition to being known as "Kampala Airport", another name for KLA is "Kololo".
• Kampala Airport was located on Kololo Hill, in the centre of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city.
• Aviation use seems to have been low-key, with little justification for what was quite a major construction - the £18,500 contract having been awarded to Gailey & Roberts Ltd.