Nonstop flight route between Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany and San Francisco, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kiel Holtenau Airport (KEL), Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany and San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,484 miles (or 8,826 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 Kiel Holtenau Airport and San Francisco International Airport, 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 Kiel Holtenau Airport and San Francisco International Airport. 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 Kiel Holtenau Airport (KEL):

• The aerodrome has been in military use from the beginning.
• A new hangar was built in 2000.
• The furthest airport from Kiel Holtenau Airport (KEL) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,649 miles (18,747 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In 1995, the airport became a civilian airport again and in 1997, a new control tower that was operated by civilian staff was constructed.
• Cirrus Airlines operated scheduled flights to Munich from 2 May 2006 using a single DHC-8-100 aircraft, which was based in Kiel Airport.
• Its taxiways were extended in 1963, a first terminal was built in 1965.
• The closest airport to Kiel Holtenau Airport (KEL) is Sønderborg Airport (SGD), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) NNW of KEL.
• Because of Kiel Holtenau Airport's relatively low elevation of 101 feet, planes can take off or land at Kiel Holtenau 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.
• In addition to being known as "Kiel Holtenau Airport", another name for KEL is "Flughafen Kiel-Holtenau".
• Kiel Holtenau Airport (KEL) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about San Francisco International Airport (SFO):

• In 1954 the airport's Central Passenger Terminal opened.
• After the war United Airlines used the Pan Am terminal 37°38′05″N 122°23′24″W / 37.6347°N 122.39°W / 37.6347.
• In summer 2011, Lufthansa and Air France operated the Airbus A380 at SFO seasonally, the first A380 scheduled service to the airport.
• The furthest airport from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has 4 runways.
• The closest airport to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Half Moon Bay AirportHalf Moon Bay Flight Strip (HAF), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) SW of SFO.
• SFO was one of several US airports which operated the Registered Traveler program from April 2007 until funding ended in June 2009, which had allowed travelers to pass through security checkpoints quickly.
• Before the 1930s, airports used a two-byte abbreviation.
• All SkyTeam, Oneworld and non-aligned international carriers operate from Boarding Area A.
• San Francisco International Airport handled 44,477,209 passengers last year.
• Because of San Francisco International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at San Francisco 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.