Nonstop flight route between Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa and Tucson, Arizona, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), Tucson, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,951 miles (or 16,014 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 O. R. Tambo International Airport and Davis–Monthan Air Force 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 O. R. Tambo International Airport and Davis–Monthan Air Force 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 O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB):

• In addition to being known as "O. R. Tambo International Airport", another name for JNB is "Johannesburg International Airport".
• In September 2006 Gauteng Province contracted Bombardier Transportation for a rail link connecting Johannesburg, Pretoria, and the airport, with construction to begin immediately.
• Because of O. R. Tambo International Airport's high elevation of 5,558 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at JNB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make JNB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• O. R. Tambo International Airport handled 18,794,897 passengers last year.
• It was used as a test airport for the Concorde during the 1970s, to determine how the aircraft would perform while taking off and landing at high altitude.
• O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Rand Airport (QRA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SW of JNB.
• The airport was founded in 1952 as "Jan Smuts Airport", two years after his death, near the town of Kempton Park on the East Rand.
• The furthest airport from O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,979 miles (19,279 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.

Facts about Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA):

• Military presence at the field began when Sergeant Simpson relocated his fuel and service operation to the site on 6 October 1927.
• The 41st Electronic Combat Squadron, equipped with the EC-130H Compass Call aircraft, arrived on 1 July 1980, and reported to the 552d Airborne Warning and Control Wing.
• The Cold War era was ushered in at Davis-Monthan in March 1946, in the form of the 40th and 444th Bombardment Groups, both equipped with B-29s.
• The closest airport to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Tucson International Airport (TUS), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SW of DMA.
• In 1919, the Tucson Chamber of Commerce aviation committee established the nation's first municipally owned airfield at the current site of the Tucson Rodeo Grounds.
• The furthest airport from Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,508 miles (18,521 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In May 1992, the 41st and 43d Electronic Combat Squadron, flying EC-130E Hercules Compass Call arrived.