Nonstop flight route between Altus, Oklahoma, United States and Mascot (near Sydney), Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Altus Air Force Base (LTS), Altus, Oklahoma, United States and Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD), Mascot (near Sydney), Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,505 miles (or 13,687 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 Altus Air Force Base and Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 Altus Air Force Base and Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 Altus Air Force Base (LTS):

• In August 1966, the 4th Mobile Communications Group transferred from Hunter AFB, Georgia to Altus.
• The 577th Strategic Missile Squadron operated twelve missile sites, of one missile at each site.
• Altus AFB, through its host 97 AMW, provides quality training to produce the finest combat-ready aircrew members for the United States Air Force.
• The furthest airport from Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,958 miles (17,635 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The 97 AMW discontinued FTU responsibilities for the C-141 concurrent with that aircraft's retirement from the USAF inventory in 2006.
• The closest airport to Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Altus/Quartz Mountain Regional Airport (AXS), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WNW of LTS.
• Altus Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 4 miles east-northeast of Altus, Oklahoma.
• June 1961 witnessed the activation of twelve Atlas “F” intercontinental ballistic missile sites within a 40-mile radius of the base.
• Between 1945 and 1953 Altus would serve as a scrap yard for hundreds of World War II era military aircraft.
• In addition to being known as "Altus Air Force Base", another name for LTS is "Altus AFB".

Facts about Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD):

• Because of Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Sydney (Kingsford Smith) 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 March 2010, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission released a report sharply critical of price gouging at Sydney airport, ranking it fifth out of five airports.
• The new terminal was officially opened on 3 May 1970, by Queen Elizabeth II.
• The local, state and federal governments have investigated the viability of building a second major airport in Sydney since the 1940s.
• Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) is Bankstown Airport (BWU), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) W of SYD.
• In addition to being known as "Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport", another name for SYD is "Kingsford-Smith Airport".
• The furthest airport from Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is nearly antipodal to Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (meaning Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Santa Maria Airport), and is located 12,144 miles (19,543 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
• The area that the airport was situated was originally a bullock paddock.Nigel Love, a former wartime pilot, was looking into the possibilities for aviation in Australia.