Nonstop flight route between Jaffna, Sri Lanka and Tonopah, Nevada, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Jaffna Airport (JAF), Jaffna, Sri Lanka and Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD), Tonopah, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,973 miles (or 14,441 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 Jaffna Airport and Tonopah Test Range 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 Jaffna Airport and Tonopah Test Range 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 Jaffna Airport (JAF):

• In addition to being known as "Jaffna Airport", another name for JAF is "யாழ்ப்பாணம் விமான நிலையம்යාපනය ගුවන්තොටුපළ".
• During World War II the British Royal Air Force built an airfield in Palaly near Kankesanthurai in northern Ceylon.
• Because of Jaffna Airport's relatively low elevation of 33 feet, planes can take off or land at Jaffna 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 Jaffna Airport (JAF) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,511 miles (18,525 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• The closest airport to Jaffna Airport (JAF) is Anuradhapura Airport (ACJ), which is located 106 miles (170 kilometers) SSE of JAF.
• Jaffna Airport is an air force base and domestic airport in Palaly in northern Sri Lanka.
• Jaffna Airport (JAF) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD):

• Tonopah is owned by the USAF Air Combat Command.
• The Tonopah Test Range airfield came into existence in 1957 and was used by the Department of Energy, the Air Force, and several contractors.
• On 12 August 1968, the IDF obtained two Syrian Air Force MiG-17F fighters that had gotten lost during a training flight and landed inadvertently at Besert Landing Field, Israel.
• The furthest airport from Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,207 miles (18,036 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Near the end of the Cold War the program was abandoned and the squadron was disbanded.
• In 1997, the United States purchased 21 Moldovan aircraft for evaluation and analysis, under the Cooperative Threat Reduction accord.
• The closest airport to Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Tonopah Airport (TPH), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NW of XSD.
• All the models had quirks.
• Several locations were considered, Michael Army Airfield at the Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah, and the Gila Bend Air Force Auxiliary Field on the Goldwater Range in Arizona.