Nonstop flight route between Leesburg, Virginia, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO), Leesburg, Virginia, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,602 miles (or 4,187 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 Leesburg Executive 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 Leesburg Executive 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO):

• Leesburg Executive Airport covers an area of 214 acres at an elevation of 389 feet above mean sea level.
• Because of Leesburg Executive Airport's relatively low elevation of 389 feet, planes can take off or land at Leesburg Executive 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 Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,650 miles (18,749 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO) is Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) SSE of JYO.
• Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Leesburg Executive Airport", another name for JYO is "Godfrey Field".

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• 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.
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• Thule Air Base has served as the regional hub for nearby installations, including Cape Atholl, Camp Century, Camp TUTO, Sites 1 and 2, P-Mountain, J-Site, North and South Mountains, and a research rocket firing site.
• After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
• In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
• Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
• Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
• 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.