Nonstop flight route between Kuruman, South Africa and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH), Kuruman, South Africa and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,678 miles (or 9,138 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 Johan Pienaar 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 Johan Pienaar 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 Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH):

• The furthest airport from Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is nearly antipodal to Johan Pienaar Airport (meaning Johan Pienaar Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Princeville Airport), and is located 12,032 miles (19,364 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH) is Kimberley Airport (KIM), which is located 124 miles (200 kilometers) SE of KMH.
• Because of Johan Pienaar Airport's high elevation of 4,382 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at KMH. Combined with a high temperature, this could make KMH a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• 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.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.