Nonstop flight route between Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, United Kingdom and Knob Noster, Missouri, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kirkwall Airport (KOI), Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, United Kingdom and Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,000 miles (or 6,437 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 Kirkwall Airport and Whiteman 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 Kirkwall Airport and Whiteman 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 Kirkwall Airport (KOI):

• Kirkwall Airport (KOI) has 2 runways.
• Because of Kirkwall Airport's relatively low elevation of 58 feet, planes can take off or land at Kirkwall 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 closest airport to Kirkwall Airport (KOI) is Stronsay Airport (SOY), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NE of KOI.
• Kirkwall Airport handled 145,897 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Kirkwall Airport (KOI) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,525 miles (18,548 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.

Facts about Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):

• Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 2 miles south of Knob Noster, Missouri.
• In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
• The 476th Fighter Group, stationed at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, is an Air Force Reserve Command unit linked to the 23rd Fighter Group at Moody.
• Other aircraft assigned to Whiteman include the A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack fighter.
• In June 1961, the Department of Defense chose Whiteman to host the fourth Minuteman ICBM wing.
• During the massive demobilization in the mid-1940s, the base closed and most of the buildings were abandoned.
• The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
• Several new buildings emerged from time to time as the base matured.