Nonstop flight route between Lafayette, Louisiana, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT), Lafayette, Louisiana, United States and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,352 miles (or 5,394 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 Lafayette Regional Airport and Elmendorf 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 Lafayette Regional Airport and Elmendorf 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 Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT):

• In March 2001, Air Force One landed in Lafayette transporting President George W.
• The last major airline jet service for the airport was operated by Continental Airlines with Boeing 737-300 and Boeing 737-500 jetliners nonstop to Houston.
• Lafayette Regional Airport is building a new cargo terminal on the southwest side of the airfield, near the PHI headquarters.
• The closest airport to Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) is Acadiana Regional Airport (ARA), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSE of LFT.
• The airport opened as Lafayette Municipal Airport on 29 November 1930.
• Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) has 3 runways.
• The airfield was transferred from the DeRidder AAB to Esler Army Airfield on 24 March 1944.
• Because of Lafayette Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 42 feet, planes can take off or land at Lafayette Regional 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 furthest airport from Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,070 miles (17,815 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• On 28 July 2010, a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base, killing all four air crew members.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• On 12 November 1940, the War Department formally designated what had been popularly referred to as Elmendorf Field as Fort Richardson.