Nonstop flight route between Khost, Afghanistan and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Khost Airport (KHT), Khost, Afghanistan and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,703 miles (or 5,960 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 Khost Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Khost Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Khost Airport (KHT):

• There had been three major reported accidents, all of them during the 1980s mujahideen fighting and involved Russian-made Antonov An-26 aircraft.
• Khost Airport (KHT) currently has only 1 runway.
• Khost Airport is located next to the city of Khost in eastern Afghanistan.
• In addition to being known as "Khost Airport", other names for KHT include "Khost Airport (Khost)", "دخوست هوائی ډګر" and "KDH".
• In December 2009, seven CIA employees were killed in a suicide attack at the nearby Forward Operating Base Chapman.
• The furthest airport from Khost Airport (KHT) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is nearly antipodal to Khost Airport (meaning Khost Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mataveri International Airport), and is located 12,009 miles (19,326 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• Work began to improve the Khost Airport in September 2011.
• The closest airport to Khost Airport (KHT) is Bannu Airport (BNP), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) SE of KHT.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The 422nd ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.