Nonstop flight route between Icy Bay, Alaska, United States and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Icy Bay Airport (ICY), Icy Bay, Alaska, United States and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,563 miles (or 7,344 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 Icy Bay Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, 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 Icy Bay Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component. 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 Icy Bay Airport (ICY):

• Because of Icy Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 50 feet, planes can take off or land at Icy Bay 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.
• Icy Bay Airport (ICY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Icy Bay Airport (ICY) is Yakataga Airport (CYT), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) WNW of ICY.
• The furthest airport from Icy Bay Airport (ICY) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,551 miles (16,981 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Scheduled passenger service to Yakutat Airport ended in 2012, when the United States Department of Transportation suspended Essential Air Service subsidies.
• In addition to being known as "Icy Bay Airport", another name for ICY is "19AK".

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E­3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located in the Federal Republic of Germany, near the village of Teveren and six kilometers west of the town of Geilenkirchen.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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.