Nonstop flight route between New York City, New York, United States and Jaffna, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York City, New York, United States and Jaffna Airport (JAF), Jaffna, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,574 miles (or 13,798 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 John F. Kennedy International Airport and Jaffna 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 John F. Kennedy International Airport and Jaffna 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 John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK):

• Because of John F. Kennedy International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at John F. Kennedy 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.
• John F. Kennedy International Airport handled 50,423,765 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) is Flushing Airport (closed 1984) (FLU), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) NNW of JFK.
• The Air Traffic Control Tower, designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners and constructed on the ramp-side of Terminal 4, began full FAA operations in October 1994.
• The Avro Jetliner landed at JFK on April 18, 1950 and maybe in January 1951.
• Until the early 1990s, each terminal was known by the primary airline that served it, except for Terminal 4, which was known as the International Arrivals Building.
• John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,764 miles (18,933 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• British Airways is currently evaluating the future of Terminal 7, as its lease with the Port Authority ends in 2015.

Facts about Jaffna Airport (JAF):

• In addition to being known as "Jaffna Airport", another name for JAF is "யாழ்ப்பாணம் விமான நிலையம்යාපනය ගුවන්තොටුපළ".
• 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.
• 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.
• During World War II the British Royal Air Force built an airfield in Palaly near Kankesanthurai in northern Ceylon.
• The inaugural flight by Air Ceylon on 10 December 1947 was from Ratmalana Airport to Madras via Kankesanthurai.
• Jaffna Airport (JAF) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Jaffna Airport (JAF) is Anuradhapura Airport (ACJ), which is located 106 miles (170 kilometers) SSE of JAF.