Nonstop flight route between Kandahar, Afghanistan and Altus, Oklahoma, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kabul International Airport (KDH), Kandahar, Afghanistan and Altus Air Force Base (LTS), Altus, Oklahoma, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,763 miles (or 12,494 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 Kabul International Airport and Altus 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 Kabul International Airport and Altus 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 Kabul International Airport (KDH):

• The Afghan government has been slow in rebuilding the facility, the vast majority of it has been reclaimed from years of neglect and damage by Soviet and Taliban soldiers.
• A perimeter was quickly secured around the terminal building and airstrip, and initially all troops worked and lived in and around the main terminal building itself.
• Kabul International Airport (KDH) currently has only 1 runway.
• During the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the airfield was used intensively by the Soviet Air Forces, both as logistical facility for flying in troops and supplies and as a base for launching airstrikes against local Mujahideen groups.
• The closest airport to Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Tarin Kowt Airport (TII), which is located 76 miles (123 kilometers) N of KDH.
• The 2009 surge in NATO operations in southern Afghanistan pushed the number of aircraft operations at the base from 1,700 to 5,000 flights a week.
• The furthest airport from Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is nearly antipodal to Kabul International Airport (meaning Kabul International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mataveri International Airport), and is located 12,023 miles (19,349 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Kabul International Airport", other names for KDH include "Kandahar International Airport (Kandahar)" and "میدان هوایی بین المللی کندهار".
• Since the airport was designed as a military base, it is likely that the United States intended to use it in case there was a show-down of war between the United States and former USSR.

Facts about Altus Air Force Base (LTS):

• The base would only sit idle for a few years.
• The closest airport to Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Altus/Quartz Mountain Regional Airport (AXS), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WNW of LTS.
• In addition to being known as "Altus Air Force Base", another name for LTS is "Altus AFB".
• The furthest airport from Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,958 miles (17,635 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In 1967, the Air Force began searching for a base that could handle the training for its strategic airlift fleet, the C-141 Starlifter and its newest and largest transport aircraft, the C-5 Galaxy.
• The host unit at Altus AFB is the 97th Air Mobility Wing, assigned to the Nineteenth Air Force of the Air Education and Training Command.
• Between 1945 and 1953 Altus would serve as a scrap yard for hundreds of World War II era military aircraft.
• In August 2002, the mission of the wing grew when the Air Force moved the basic loadmaster course from Sheppard AFB, Texas to Altus.