Nonstop flight route between Longreach, Queensland, Australia and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Longreach Airport (LRE), Longreach, Queensland, Australia and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,675 miles (or 15,570 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 Longreach Airport and RAF Lakenheath, 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 Longreach Airport and RAF Lakenheath. 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 Longreach Airport (LRE):

• In late 1920, the Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Service was founded.
• Because of Longreach Airport's relatively low elevation of 627 feet, planes can take off or land at Longreach 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.
• Charles Kingsford Smith arrived in 1927, during a flight around the continent.
• In 1941, the Department of Civil Aviation established the Longreach Aeradio station at the airport.
• The closest airport to Longreach Airport (LRE) is Barcaldine Airport (BCI), which is located 66 miles (106 kilometers) E of LRE.
• In 1990, the Department of Aviation closed the Longreach Flight Service Unit, the descendant of the Aeradio station opened in 1941.
• Longreach Airport (LRE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The first overland flight across the Australian continent from Melbourne to Darwin passed through the airport in 1919.
• The furthest airport from Longreach Airport (LRE) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,625 miles (18,709 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• Many SAC Squadrons had aircraft at RAF Lakenheath on a transitotry basis without any recorded deployment to the base.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union in Europe began as early as 1946.
• Control of RAF Lakenheath was allocated to Third Air Force at South Ruislip Air Station, which had command of SAC B-29 operations in England.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• In addition to supporting three combat-ready squadrons of F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15C Eagle fighter aircraft, the Liberty Wing houses the 56th Rescue Squadron's HH-60G Combat Search and Rescue helicopters.