Nonstop flight route between Wichita, Kansas, United States and Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB), Wichita, Kansas, United States and Chatham Islands (CHT), Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,489 miles (or 12,052 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Chatham Islands, 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Chatham Islands. 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB):

• In October 1962, the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing was reactivated at McConnell with four fighter squadrons.
• McConnell's primary mission is to provide global reach by conducting air refueling and airlift where and when needed.
• McConnell's history began in October 1924, when the city of Wichita hosted more than 100,000 people for the National Air Congress.
• In spite of the difficulty of building an installation and initiating an entirely new program simultaneously, the base developed into a highly specialized training center.
• The closest airport to McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Cessna Aircraft Field (CEA), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) NNE of IAB.
• In addition to being known as "McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield", another name for IAB is "McConnell AFB".
• The furthest airport from McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,740 miles (17,285 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• On 6 October 1941, the unit was ordered to extended active duty and remained an integral part of the United States Army Air Corps until 6 October 1945, with duty assignments in Tennessee and Okinawa.
• McConnell Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located four miles southeast of the central business district of Wichita, a city in Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States.

Facts about Chatham Islands (CHT):

• The airport is the base of Air Chathams and usually houses two aircraft overnight.
• Because of Chatham Islands's relatively low elevation of 43 feet, planes can take off or land at Chatham Islands 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 Chatham Islands (CHT) is Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL), which is nearly antipodal to Chatham Islands (meaning Chatham Islands is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport), and is located 12,410 miles (19,972 kilometers) away in Montpellier, France.
• Chatham Islands (CHT) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Chatham Islands", another name for CHT is "Tuuta Airport".
• In 2012 The New Zealand Government announced plans to develop the airport as part of an overall Economic Plan for the Chatham Islands.
• The closest airport to Chatham Islands (CHT) is Hood Aerodrome (MRO), which is located 448 miles (722 kilometers) WNW of CHT.
• The airport was completed in 1982 to replace an earlier built compacted grass airstrip at Te Hapupu that could only handle slow flying Safe Air Bristol Freighter aircraft.