Nonstop flight route between Djibouti, Djibouti and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (JIB), Djibouti, Djibouti and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,735 miles (or 6,012 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 Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (JIB):

• Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport handled 258,877 passengers last year.
• Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (JIB) currently has only 1 runway.
• BA 188 is a joint forces support establishment, which has numerous support units based there and an anti-aircraft missile section of 8 double-barrelled 20 mm anti-aircraft guns and Mistral firing posts.
• The closest airport to Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (JIB) is Moucha Airport (MHI), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) NNE of JIB.
• Because of Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport's relatively low elevation of 49 feet, planes can take off or land at Djibouti–Ambouli 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.
• As the airport is located south of Djibouti City and its runways run east–west, an airliner's landing approach is usually directly over the conurbation of the capital, when the wind is from the west.
• The furthest airport from Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (JIB) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is nearly antipodal to Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport (meaning Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Atuona Airport), and is located 12,246 miles (19,708 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• In the mid-1970s, the airport was enlarged to accommodate more international carriers, with the state-owned Air Djibouti providing regular trips to all major cities.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• RAF Fairford is also the home of the Royal International Air Tattoo, an annual air display.
• Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.