Nonstop flight route between Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from JNB to THU:
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- About this route
- JNB Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about JNB
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to JNB
- List of Nearest Airports to JNB
- Map of Furthest Airports from JNB
- List of Furthest Airports from JNB
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,083 miles (or 13,008 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 Thule Air 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 Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | JNB / FAOR |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa |
| GPS Coordinates: | 26°8'21"S by 28°14'45"E |
| Area Served: | Johannesburg, South Africa Pretoria, South Africa |
| Operator/Owner: | Airports Company South Africa |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5558 feet (1,694 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from JNB |
| More Information: | JNB Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB):
- There are two parallel north-south runways and a disused cross runway.
- O. R. Tambo International Airport handled 18,794,897 passengers last year.
- A second terminal between the two runways has also been mooted, which is proposed for completion by 2012.
- 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.
- 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.
- O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) has 2 runways.
- In September 2006 Gauteng Province contracted Bombardier Transportation for a rail link connecting Johannesburg, Pretoria, and the airport, with construction to begin immediately.
- In addition to being known as "O. R. Tambo International Airport", another name for JNB is "Johannesburg International Airport".
- 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 Thule Air Base (THU):
- In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- Originally established as a Strategic Air Command installation, Thule would periodically serve as a dispersal base for B-36 Peacemaker and B-47 Stratojet aircraft during the 1950s, as well as providing an ideal site to test the operability and maintainability of these weapon systems in extreme cold weather.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
