Nonstop flight route between Leribe, Lesotho and Akrotiri, Cyprus:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Leribe Airport (LRB), Leribe, Lesotho and RAF Akrotiri (AKT), Akrotiri, Cyprus would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,396 miles (or 7,074 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 Leribe Airport and RAF Akrotiri, 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 Leribe Airport and RAF Akrotiri. 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 Leribe Airport (LRB):

• The closest airport to Leribe Airport (LRB) is Moshoeshoe I International Airport (MSU), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) SW of LRB.
• Because of Leribe Airport's high elevation of 5,350 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at LRB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make LRB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Leribe Airport (LRB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Leribe Airport (LRB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,824 miles (19,030 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.

Facts about RAF Akrotiri (AKT):

• The U-2s of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing were used in Operation Cedar Sweep to fly surveillance over Lebanon, relaying information about Hezbollah militants to Lebanese authorities, and in Operation Highland Warrior to fly surveillance over Turkey and northern Iraq to relay information to Turkish authorities.
• The attack on Egypt was a military success, despite interference in the plan which reduced its effectiveness.
• The furthest airport from RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,556 miles (18,598 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• Royal Air Force Akrotiri or more simply RAF Akrotiri is a large Royal Air Force station, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.
• Even this massive influx from Egypt was not the end.
• The closest airport to RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Paphos International Airport (PFO), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) WNW of AKT.
• In September 1976 the US U-2 operations were turned over to the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, but the U-2 operation at RAF Akrotiri continued to be called Operating Location OH until September 1980.
• In addition to being known as "RAF Akrotiri", another name for AKT is ""Aki"".
• Akrotiri was first constructed in the mid-1950s to relieve pressure on the main RAF station on the island, RAF Nicosia.
• A constant problem of airfields located outside the territory of the country whose forces are based there is that of overflight rights.
• In the mid-1980s, the US launched retaliatory attacks against Libya after the country's leader, Muammar al-Gaddafi, was implicated in terrorist attacks against US military bases.
• Due to the station's relative proximity to the Middle East, it is often used by British allies when needed, such as for casualty reception for Americans after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and as a staging post before heading into theatres of combat in the Middle East/Persian Gulf theaters.