Nonstop flight route between Saga, Kyūshū, Japan and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Saga Airport (HSG), Saga, Kyūshū, Japan and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,814 miles (or 7,747 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 Saga Airport and Thule 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 Saga Airport and Thule 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 Saga Airport (HSG):

• The closest airport to Saga Airport (HSG) is Nagasaki Airport (NGS), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) SW of HSG.
• Saga Airport (HSG) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Saga Airport (HSG) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Saga Airport (meaning Saga Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,275 miles (19,755 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• In addition to being known as "Saga Airport", other names for HSG include "佐賀空港" and "Saga-kūkō".
• The governor of Saga Prefecture announced the construction of Saga Airport in January 1969, and after years of studies and negotiations, construction commenced in 1997.
• Because of Saga Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Saga 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.
• ANA currently operates a 767 freighter on an overnight Kansai-Haneda-Saga-Kansai route on weeknights only.
• Due to the slump in mainline service to the airport, Saga Prefecture began several programs aimed at promoting usage of the airport, including ground transportation subsidies for local companies that used the airport for business travel.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
• In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
• In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.