Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Chatham Islands (CHT), Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,707 miles (or 12,403 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Chatham Islands, 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Chatham Islands. 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 MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• Detachment 1 of the 23d Wing is unique in that it hosts the Deployed Unit Complex at MacDill AFB, providing flight line and logistical support for detachments of Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps tactical jet fighter and attack aircraft utilizing the nearby Avon Park Air Force Range facility, the Avon Range also being operated and maintained by Det 1, 23d Wing.
• The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.
• The 44th Bombardment Group was activated at MacDill on 15 January 1941 equipped with the Consolidated B-24A Liberator.
• In late 1943, when Second Air Force began transitioning to B-29 Superfortress training, the B-17 mission returned to MacDill which continued through the end of World War II.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• MacDill Air Force Base is an active United States Air Force base located approximately 4 miles south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida.
• The base also supports the large military retiree community in the Tampa Bay area and surrounding environs.
• The 6 AMW also has a collocated "Associate" wing at MacDill, the 927th Air Refueling Wing of the Air Force Reserve Command.

Facts about Chatham Islands (CHT):

• Because of Chatham Islands's relatively low elevation of 43 feet, planes can take off or land at Chatham Islands 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 Chatham Islands (CHT) is Hood Aerodrome (MRO), which is located 448 miles (722 kilometers) WNW of CHT.
• Chatham Islands (CHT) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Chatham Islands", another name for CHT is "Tuuta Airport".
• The airport is the base of Air Chathams and usually houses two aircraft overnight.
• A small aviation museum is also based there, signifying the importance that aviation has played in developing the economic wealth of the island group.
• The airport was completed in 1982 to replace an earlier built compacted grass airstrip at Te Hapupu that could only handle slow flying Safe Air Bristol Freighter aircraft.
• The furthest airport from Chatham Islands (CHT) is Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL), which is nearly antipodal to Chatham Islands (meaning Chatham Islands is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport), and is located 12,410 miles (19,972 kilometers) away in Montpellier, France.