Nonstop flight route between Derry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and Hotan, Xinjiang, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between City of Derry Airport (LDY), Derry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and Hotan Airport (HTN), Hotan, Xinjiang, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,066 miles (or 6,543 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 City of Derry Airport and Hotan 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 City of Derry Airport and Hotan 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 City of Derry Airport (LDY):

• In May 2006, the European Commission gave its approval for the British and Irish governments to invest €15 million in the airport.
• City of Derry Airport handled 384,973 passengers last year.
• In June 2010 it was announced that the Airport was in the final stages of discussion with the Balfour Beatty Group about a management contract, with the objective of bringing additional commercial experience and resources to the Airport for the economic benefit of the region and to reduce the subvention from the City Council.
• The furthest airport from City of Derry Airport (LDY) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,838 miles (19,051 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to City of Derry Airport (LDY) is Belfast International Airport (BFS), which is located 46 miles (74 kilometers) SE of LDY.
• Aer Arann operated services to Manchester and Birmingham for a short time.
• Passenger numbers in 2013 were 384,973, a 3.3% decrease compared with 2012.
• Because of City of Derry Airport's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at City of Derry 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 "City of Derry Airport", another name for LDY is "Londonderry/Eglinton Airport[1]".
• In April 2009 the council issued tender documents for a multi-million pound expansion of the terminal to improve passenger flow and meet current EU customs and immigration regulations.
• City of Derry Airport (LDY) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Hotan Airport (HTN):

• Hotan Airport (HTN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Hotan Airport (HTN) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,566 miles (18,613 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• The closest airport to Hotan Airport (HTN) is Kushok Bakula Rimpochhe Airport (IXL), which is located 239 miles (385 kilometers) SSW of HTN.
• Because of Hotan Airport's high elevation of 4,672 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at HTN. Combined with a high temperature, this could make HTN a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• In addition to being known as "Hotan Airport", other names for HTN include "和田机场" and "Hétián Jīchǎng".