Nonstop flight route between Maupiti, Leeward Islands, French Polynesia and Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maupiti Airport (MAU), Maupiti, Leeward Islands, French Polynesia and RAF Lyneham (LYE), Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,514 miles (or 15,312 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 Maupiti Airport and RAF Lyneham, 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 Maupiti Airport and RAF Lyneham. 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 Maupiti Airport (MAU):

• Maupiti Airport (MAU) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Maupiti Airport (MAU) is Bora Bora Airport (BOB), which is located 33 miles (52 kilometers) E of MAU.
• Because of Maupiti Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Maupiti 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.
• The furthest airport from Maupiti Airport (MAU) is El Debba Airport (EDB), which is nearly antipodal to Maupiti Airport (meaning Maupiti Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from El Debba Airport), and is located 12,198 miles (19,631 kilometers) away in El Debba (Al Dabbah), Sudan.

Facts about RAF Lyneham (LYE):

• The Ministry of Defence announced plans in December 2012 to re-develop Lyneham as a Defence Technical Training establishment by the end of 2015 and, on 14 December 2012, it invited interest from industry into developing the infrastructure at the former RAF site at Lyneham.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lyneham (LYE) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,913 miles (19,172 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The airfield became renowned for being the "gateway" between the United Kingdom and Afghanistan.
• The station was opened on 18 May 1940 as No.
• Because of RAF Lyneham's relatively low elevation of 512 feet, planes can take off or land at RAF Lyneham 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 RAF Lyneham (LYE) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) NE of LYE.
• The decision to close RAF Lyneham was made in 2002, and it was scheduled for closure by 2012 with all functions and aircraft relocated to RAF Brize Norton.
• In 1956, with the arrival of the de Havilland Comet operated by 216 Squadron, the main runway was extended from 6,000 feet to its present length of 7,830 feet.
• The airfield was built in 1939, necessitating the demolition of Lyneham Court manor house, the buildings of Cranley Farm and the village's tennis courts.
• RAF Lyneham (LYE) has 2 runways.
• The station closed on 31 December 2012 with the majority of its personnel and other assets having moved to RAF Brize Norton.