Nonstop flight route between Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands, Japan and Kandahar, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (IWO), Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands, Japan and Kabul International Airport (KDH), Kandahar, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,532 miles (or 7,294 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 Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 and Kabul International Airport, 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 Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 and Kabul International Airport. 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 Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (IWO):

• A third Japanese airfield 24°47′37″N 141°19′29″E / 24.79361°N 141.32472°E / 24.79361.
• Central Field was one of three Japanese airfields built on Iwo Jima.
• The furthest airport from Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (IWO) is Cabo Frio International Airport (CFB), which is nearly antipodal to Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (meaning Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cabo Frio International Airport), and is located 12,187 miles (19,612 kilometers) away in Cabo Frio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (IWO) is Hachijojima Airport (HAC), which is located 583 miles (938 kilometers) N of IWO.

Facts about Kabul International Airport (KDH):

• The closest airport to Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Tarin Kowt Airport (TII), which is located 76 miles (123 kilometers) N of KDH.
• The Afghan government has been slow in rebuilding the facility, the vast majority of it has been reclaimed from years of neglect and damage by Soviet and Taliban soldiers.
• The furthest airport from Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is nearly antipodal to Kabul International Airport (meaning Kabul International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mataveri International Airport), and is located 12,023 miles (19,349 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• A perimeter was quickly secured around the terminal building and airstrip, and initially all troops worked and lived in and around the main terminal building itself.
• The airport was mostly used at this time for military and humanitarian purposes, hosting regular flights of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross to and from Kabul, Jalalabad, Herat and Peshawar.
• As of 2007, the airport has been repaired and expanded.
• In addition to being known as "Kabul International Airport", other names for KDH include "Kandahar International Airport (Kandahar)" and "میدان هوایی بین المللی کندهار".
• Major battles between the Taliban and local anti-Taliban forces had been fought at the airport just days earlier, and when coalition troops arrived there were abandoned weapons - including a BM-21 still loaded with rockets - scattered around the terminal.
• Kabul International Airport (KDH) currently has only 1 runway.