Nonstop flight route between Montego Bay, Jamaica and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sangster International Airport (MBJ), Montego Bay, Jamaica and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,632 miles (or 7,455 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 Sangster International Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Sangster International Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Sangster International Airport (MBJ):

• The first international airline to fly into the Montego Bay Airport was Pan American Airways, and the airport, which in comparison to today's standards, was more like a small aerodrome, was operated by Pan American until 30 September 1949, when the Jamaican government took control of the facility.
• Peak arriving and departing capacity is 4,200 passengers per hour.
• Sangster International Airport (MBJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Sangster International Airport (MBJ) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,877 miles (19,115 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• The closest airport to Sangster International Airport (MBJ) is Negril Aerodrome (NEG), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) WSW of MBJ.
• Approximately 95% of total passengers at SIA are passengers travelling internationally.
• Sangster International Airport handled 3,381,490 passengers last year.
• Over the years, the upgrading process was a continuous one, ultimately the facility had grown into the larger of the two international airports in Jamaica, handling approximately 3.7 million passengers per annum in 2007, and has seen an increase in passenger and aircraft movement since the start of 2008.
• Because of Sangster International Airport's relatively low elevation of 4 feet, planes can take off or land at Sangster International 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.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.