Nonstop flight route between Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom and Hickory, North Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Luton Airport (LTN), Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom and Hickory Regional Airport (HKY), Hickory, North Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,971 miles (or 6,391 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 London Luton Airport and Hickory Regional 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 London Luton Airport and Hickory Regional 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 London Luton Airport (LTN):

• From the mid-1960s, executive aircraft have been based at the airport, initially operated by McAlpine Aviation.
• London Luton Airport handled 9,697,944 passengers last year.
• Following the war, the land was returned to the local council which continued activity at the airport as a commercial operation.
• In August 1997, to fund an £80 million extension of the airport, the council issued a 30-year concession contract to a public private partnership consortium, London Luton Airport Operations Limited, a partnership of Airport Group International and Barclays Private Equity.
• The airport remains in municipal ownership, owned by Luton Borough Council but managed by the private sector London Luton Airport Operations Limited.
• Because of London Luton Airport's relatively low elevation of 526 feet, planes can take off or land at London Luton 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.
• In order for the airport to expand further, the Department for Transport advised the airport authority to use the airport site more efficiently.
• London Luton Airport (LTN) currently has only 1 runway.
• London Luton Airport is an international airport located 1.5 nautical miles east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is 30.5 NM north of Central London.
• An airport was opened on the site on 16 July 1938 by the Secretary of State for Air, Kingsley Wood.
• The airport was also mentioned in a famous Campari advert featuring Lorraine Chase, with the punch line "Were you truly wafted here from paradise?".
• The furthest airport from London Luton Airport (LTN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,851 miles (19,072 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to London Luton Airport (LTN) is Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SSE of LTN.

Facts about Hickory Regional Airport (HKY):

• On August 2, 1941, Pennsylvania Central Airlines which later became Capital Airlines, brought the first scheduled air-carrier service to Hickory.
• The Hickory Municipal Airport was first opened to aircraft traffic on May 17, 1940.
• Hickory Regional Airport (HKY) has 2 runways.
• Shortly thereafter, the runway which came to be designated 6/24 was lengthened and both of the existing runways were paved.
• After the airline deregulation of the late 1970s, the nature of commercial service would change for Hickory.
• Hickory Regional Airport is a public airport located three miles west of the central business district of Hickory, a city in Catawba County, North Carolina, United States.
• The furthest airport from Hickory Regional Airport (HKY) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,494 miles (18,499 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Hickory Regional Airport (HKY) is Foothills Regional Airport (MRN), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) WNW of HKY.