Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and Richmond, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gatwick Airport (LGW), London, England, United Kingdom and Richmond International Airport (RIC), Richmond, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,745 miles (or 6,026 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 Richmond 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 Richmond 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):

• During the late 1920s, land adjacent to the racecourse was used as an aerodrome.
• 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.
• 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.
• Despite the rapid expansion of BUA's scheduled activities at Gatwick, the airport was dominated by non-scheduled services into the 1980s.
• In 1983, as passenger numbers grew, a round satellite pier was added to the terminal building connected to the main terminal by the UK's first automated people mover system.
• Although the airport was officially decommissioned in 1946, the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation continued operating it as a civil airfield.
• Gatwick Airport handled 35,444,206 passengers last year.
• A second 875-foot extension of Gatwick's runway was completed in 1970, bringing it to 9,075 ft and permitting non-stop jet flights to the US east coast with a full payload and full range and payload operations by British United Airways and Caledonian Airways BAC One-Eleven 500s.BEA Airtours made Gatwick their base.

Facts about Richmond International Airport (RIC):

• Because of Richmond International Airport's relatively low elevation of 167 feet, planes can take off or land at Richmond 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.
• Richmond International Airport handled 3,311,747 passengers last year.
• Richmond International Airport (RIC) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Richmond International Airport (RIC) is A.P. Hill Army Airfield (APH), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) N of RIC.
• The furthest airport from Richmond International Airport (RIC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,698 miles (18,827 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Until October 2007, the 192d Fighter Wing, an Air Combat Command -gained unit of the Virginia Air National Guard, maintained an Air National Guard station, operating F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft from the airport.
• In 2007, the airport served 3,634,544 passengers, a record for the airport.
• The airport was dedicated as Richard Evelyn Byrd Flying Field in 1927 in honor of aviator Richard E.