Nonstop flight route between Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR), Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,779 miles (or 4,472 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear and Elmendorf Air Force 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear and Elmendorf Air Force 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR):

• In 2011, the airport had 126,350 passengers.Scandinavian Airlines operates daily flights to Tromsø and Oslo in mainland Norway.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear handled 126,350 passengers last year.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear is the main airport serving Svalbard in Norway.
• In addition to being known as "Svalbard Airport, Longyear", another name for LYR is "Svalbard lufthavn, Longyear".
• The furthest airport from Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,170 miles (16,367 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.
• Because of Svalbard Airport, Longyear's relatively low elevation of 94 feet, planes can take off or land at Svalbard Airport, Longyear 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.
• The closest airport to Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) is Honningsvåg Airport, Valan (HVG), which is located 534 miles (859 kilometers) SSE of LYR.
• On 14 August 1987, Braathens SAFE re-entered the market, flying in parallel with SAS to Tromsø and Oslo.
• Construction started in 1973.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• On 28 July 2010, a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base, killing all four air crew members.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command, 11th Air Force, U.S.
• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The first Air Force unit to be assigned to Alaska, the 18th Pursuit Squadron, arrived in February 1941.
• The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• The Elmendorf AFB is a site of one of the now decommissioned FLR-9 Wullenweber-class antennas, a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT direction finding system.