Nonstop flight route between Wilmington, North Carolina, United States and Fairbanks, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wilmington International Airport (ILM), Wilmington, North Carolina, United States and Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,497 miles (or 5,628 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 Wilmington International Airport and Eielson Air Force 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 Wilmington International Airport and Eielson Air Force 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 Wilmington International Airport (ILM):

• ILM was one of four airports along the East Coast which served as an emergency abort landing site for the Space Shuttle.
• The closest airport to Wilmington International Airport (ILM) is Albert J. Ellis Airport (OAJ), which is located 42 miles (68 kilometers) NNE of ILM.
• The furthest airport from Wilmington International Airport (ILM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,693 miles (18,818 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Piedmont Airlines began commercial flights to Wilmington in February 1948, and used Wilmington as one of its initial crew bases.
• In addition to being known as "Wilmington International Airport", another name for ILM is "New Hanover County International Airport".
• Wilmington International Airport (ILM) has 2 runways.
• The New Hanover County Airport Authority has five board members.
• Because of Wilmington International Airport's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Wilmington 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.

Facts about Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):

• A month later, contractors and civilian crews from Ladd Field started laying out the new airfield.
• The Air Defense Command deployed interceptors to Eielson during the 1960s.
• In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
• The closest airport to Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) NW of EIL.
• A new chapter for the base began 1 October 1981 when the 343d Composite Wing replaced the 5010th as Eielson's host unit.
• The furthest airport from Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,295 miles (16,568 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The 58th Weather Squadron remained at Eielson until 8 August 1958.