Nonstop flight route between Washington, D.C. / Virginia, United States and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), Washington, D.C. / Virginia, United States and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,411 miles (or 13,536 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 Washington Dulles International Airport and King Shaka International, 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 Washington Dulles International Airport and King Shaka International. 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 Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD):

• Under the development plan, future phases would see the addition of several new midfield concourses and a new south terminal.
• A new train system, dubbed AeroTrain and developed by Mitsubishi, began in 2010 to transport passengers between the concourses and the main terminal.
• By the 1980s, the original design, which had mobile lounges meet each plane, was no longer well-suited to Dulles' role as a hub airport.
• A new and permanent C/D concourse is planned as part of the D2 Dulles Development Project.
• Because of Washington Dulles International Airport's relatively low elevation of 313 feet, planes can take off or land at Washington Dulles 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 Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) NNW of IAD.
• The furthest airport from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,659 miles (18,763 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Washington Dulles Airport is the busiest airport in the Washington metropolitan area, and second busiest airport in the larger Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area with over 22 million passengers a year.
• Concourse A consists of a permanent ground level set of gates designed for small planes such as regional jets and several former B concourse gates.
• United Airlines maintains one of two East Coast hubs at Dulles which handled 56.7% of scheduled air carrier passengers at the airport.JetBlue handled 6.8% of scheduled air carrier passengers.
• The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority has begun to gradually phase out the mobile lounge system for inter-terminal passenger movements in favor of the AeroTrain, an underground people mover which currently operates to Concourses A, B and C, and a pedestrian walkway system.
• Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) has 5 runways.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• Despite wide expectations that the airport would be named "King Shaka International Airport", it emerged in October 2009 that the airport needed to undergo a formal naming process.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.
• The airport forms part of the Dube Tradeport, which will additionally consist of a trade zone linked to the airport's cargo terminal, facilities to support the airport such as nearby offices and transit accommodation for tourists, an integrated agricultural export zone, and an IT platform.
• King Shaka International Airport, also known as La Mercy Airport, and abbreviated KSIA, is the primary airport serving Durban, South Africa.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Neighbouring communities are Tongaat to the north-west, Verulam to the south-west, and Umdloti to the south-east.
• The final obstacle was a delay in the approval of the project's Environmental Impact Assessment by the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.