Nonstop flight route between Leribe, Lesotho and Spangdahlem, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Leribe Airport (LRB), Leribe, Lesotho and Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM), Spangdahlem, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,602 miles (or 9,016 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 Spangdahlem Air 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 Leribe Airport and Spangdahlem Air 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 Leribe Airport (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 closest airport to Leribe Airport (LRB) is Moshoeshoe I International Airport (MSU), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) SW of LRB.
• 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 Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM):

• The closest airport to Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Bitburg Airport (BBJ), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of SPM.
• In addition to being known as "Spangdahlem Air Base", another name for SPM is "Spangdahlem AB".
• The initial USAF military presence began on 1 September 1952 with the arrival of the 7352d Air Base Squadron on 1 September 1952 from Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base near Munich.
• The furthest airport from Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,986 miles (19,289 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Upon its arrival at Spangdahlem AB, the 10 TRW operated Lockheed RF-80A Shooting Star for daylight aerial recon and the Douglas RB-26C Invader for night recon missions.
• With the departure of the 49 TFW, the 7149th Air Base Group was activated to serve as a caretaker unit for a number of support organizations that remained behind after the departure of the 49 TFW.
• A complete reorganization of wing aircraft and aircrews occurred in November 1983, transforming the 52d TFW into the first and only all-defense suppression wing outside of the United States.
• The wing supports the Supreme Allied Commander Europe with mission-ready personnel and systems providing expeditionary air power.