Nonstop flight route between Kirksville, Missouri, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kirksville Regional Airport (IRK), Kirksville, Missouri, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,617 miles (or 4,212 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 Kirksville Regional Airport and Thule Air 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 Kirksville Regional Airport and Thule Air 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 Kirksville Regional Airport (IRK):

• Because of Kirksville Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 966 feet, planes can take off or land at Kirksville Regional 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 furthest airport from Kirksville Regional Airport (IRK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,860 miles (17,478 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• A post-war boom in commercial aviation finally reached Kirksville in 1961 when Ozark Airlines began regular air service.
• Kirksville Regional Airport (IRK) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Kirksville Regional Airport (IRK) is Trenton Municipal Airport (TRX), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) W of IRK.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
• In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
• In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.