Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and Washington, D.C. / Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gatwick Airport (LGW), London, England, United Kingdom and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), Washington, D.C. / Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,685 miles (or 5,931 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 Gatwick Airport and Washington Dulles International 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 Gatwick Airport and Washington Dulles International 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 Gatwick Airport (LGW):

• In July 1952, the British government confirmed that the airport would be renovated, primarily for aircraft diverted from Heathrow in bad weather.
• Because of Gatwick Airport's relatively low elevation of 203 feet, planes can take off or land at Gatwick 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 Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NNE of LGW.
• BEA Helicopters made Gatwick their administrative and engineering base on 1 January 1964.
• Gatwick Airport (LGW) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,901 miles (19,152 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Between 1958 and 1959, Sudan Airways and BWIA West Indies Airways were among Gatwick's first scheduled overseas airlines.
• In November 1948, the airport's owners warned that it might revert to private use by November 1949.
• On 1 May 1963, non-scheduled operators began implementing the Ministry of Aviation's instruction to transfer all regular charter flights from Heathrow to Gatwick, restricting the former's use for non-scheduled operations to "occasional" charter flights.
• Caledonian Airways purchased British United Airways in November 1970, and the combined airline was initially known as Caledonian/BUA.
• The London and Brighton Railway opened on 21 September 1841, and ran near Gatwick Manor.
• During the late 1920s, land adjacent to the racecourse was used as an aerodrome.
• Gatwick Airport handled 35,444,206 passengers last year.

Facts about Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD):

• The closest airport to Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) NNW of IAD.
• The C and D concourses, completed in 1983 and designed by Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum, were originally designed as a temporary base for United Airlines, which began hub operations at the airport in 1985.
• Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) has 5 runways.
• Under the development plan, future phases would see the addition of several new midfield concourses and a new south terminal.
• Because of Washington Dulles International Airport's relatively low elevation of 313 feet, planes can take off or land at Washington Dulles International 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.
• Construction is now underway to connect the airport to Washington via the Silver Line of the Washington Metro.
• The civil engineering firm Ammann and Whitney was named lead contractor.
• Conceived in early planning sessions in 1959, Dulles is one of the few remaining airports to use the mobile lounge for boarding and disembarkation from aircraft, and to transfer passengers between the midfield concourses and to and from the main terminal building.
• The furthest airport from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,659 miles (18,763 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.