Nonstop flight route between Huntsville / Decatur, Alabama, United States and Cape Town, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Huntsville International Airport (HSV), Huntsville / Decatur, Alabama, United States and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), Cape Town, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,284 miles (or 13,332 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 Huntsville International Airport and Cape Town 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 Huntsville International Airport and Cape Town 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 Huntsville International Airport (HSV):

• Because of Huntsville International Airport's relatively low elevation of 629 feet, planes can take off or land at Huntsville 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.
• Huntsville International Airport (HSV) has 2 runways.
• The airport is a part of the Port of Huntsville, and serves the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area.
• Currently only American Airlines and Delta Air Lines operate main line jets into the airport.
• In November 1967 Eastern scheduled nine departures each weekday from the then new airport while United had four and Southern operated 17.
• In addition to being known as "Huntsville International Airport", another name for HSV is "Carl T. Jones Field".
• From 1969 to 1980 Huntsville had nonstop or direct jet flights to Los Angeles as well as to Florida and Texas during the U.S.
• The furthest airport from Huntsville International Airport (HSV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,189 miles (18,008 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Huntsville International Airport (HSV) is Redstone Army Airfield (AAF) (HUA), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) ENE of HSV.

Facts about Cape Town International Airport (CPT):

• With the fall of apartheid in the early 1990s, ownership of the airport was transferred from the state to the newly formed Airports Company South Africa, and the airport was renamed to the politically neutral Cape Town International Airport.
• Cape Town International Airport (CPT) has 2 runways.
• In preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Cape Town International Airport was extensively expanded and renovated.
• Cape Town International Airport handled 8,505,563 passengers last year.
• Because of Cape Town International Airport's relatively low elevation of 151 feet, planes can take off or land at Cape Town 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 Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 217 miles (349 kilometers) E of CPT.
• Cape Town International Airport recorded 7.8 million passengers in 2008–2009, down from 8.4 million passengers the year before.
• The terminal building has a split-level design, with departures located in the upper floors and arrivals in the lower floors.
• Retail outlets are located on the lower level of the terminal at landside, as well as airside at the departure gates.
• The furthest airport from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,616 miles (18,693 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
• The airport has direct flights from South Africa's other two main urban areas, Johannesburg and Durban, as well as flights to smaller centres in South Africa.
• The MyCiTi bus rapid transit system provides a shuttle service connecting the airport with the Civic Centre bus station in the city centre.