Nonstop flight route between Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States and Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Las Cruces International Airport (LRU), Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States and RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,090 miles (or 8,192 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 Las Cruces International Airport and RAF Brize Norton, 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 Las Cruces International Airport and RAF Brize Norton. 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 Las Cruces International Airport (LRU):

• This landing rights airport is on a Mesa overlooking the Mesilla Valley.
• Because of Las Cruces International Airport's high elevation of 4,457 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at LRU. Combined with a high temperature, this could make LRU a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) is Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) SE of LRU.
• The airport has two fixed base operators, Southwest Aviation and Las Cruces Aero Services.
• The furthest airport from Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,383 miles (18,319 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.

Facts about RAF Brize Norton (BZZ):

• By 1950 the USAF Strategic Air Command was based at RAF Lakenheath, RAF Marham, and RAF Sculthorpe.
• With the closure of RAF Lyneham taking place in late 2011, the repatriation of British personnel was relocated to Brize Norton on 8 September 2011.
• The closest airport to RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) WSW of BZZ.
• By the 1950s Cold War tension was escalating and the United States envisaged stationing nuclear bombers in the United Kingdom as a deterrent to Soviet aggression.
• The furthest airport from RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,888 miles (19,132 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• AirTanker Services is operating the RAF's Airbus A330 MRTT to provide aerial re-fuelling services at Brize Norton.
• Following the Falklands War, the RAF found itself lacking in the strategic transport capabilities required to sustain the expanded military presence there.
• In 1970 two squadrons 99 Squadron and 511 Squadron operating the Bristol Britannia moved from RAF Lyneham.
• On 19 September 2005, Brize Norton was closed as part of a major upgrade project.
• The Hercules fleet at RAF Lyneham officially moved to Brize Norton on 1 July 2011.