Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Edinburgh, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Edinburgh Airport (EDI), Edinburgh, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,235 miles (or 6,816 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 Edinburgh 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Edinburgh 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 MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• The base also supports the large military retiree community in the Tampa Bay area and surrounding environs.
• The host unit at MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Mobility Wing, assigned to the Air Mobility Command's 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force.
• After the war in Europe had broken out in September 1939, fears of Nazi U-Boats attacking American shipping in the Gulf of Mexico was the concern of the War Department.
• 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.
• Estimates of the number of crew members trained at the base during the war vary from 50,000 to 120,000, with as many as 15,000 troops were stationed at MacDill Field at one time.
• 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.
• On 24 June 1945 a hurricane hit the Tampa area, and the B-17 aircraft were evacuated to Vichy Army Airfield, Missouri.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".

Facts about Edinburgh Airport (EDI):

• The closest airport to Edinburgh Airport (EDI) is Perth Airport (PSL), which is located 34 miles (55 kilometers) N of EDI.
• Edinburgh Airport handled 9,775,443 passengers last year.
• In 2005, a new 57 m tall air traffic control tower was completed at a cost of £10m.
• On 19 October 2011, BAA Limited announced its intention to sell the airport, following a decision by the UK's Competition Commission requiring BAA to sell either Glasgow International or Edinburgh Airport.
• £250m is to be spent on the airport over the next decade.
• There are currently no direct rail links to Edinburgh Airport, although it lies very close to the Fife Circle and the Edinburgh-Glasgow railway lines.
• Edinburgh Airport (EDI) has 2 runways.
• Because of Edinburgh Airport's relatively low elevation of 136 feet, planes can take off or land at Edinburgh 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 Edinburgh Airport (EDI) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,713 miles (18,850 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The airport lies on the A8 Glasgow-Edinburgh road, and can be easily reached by the M8 and the M9.
• When the war ended the airfield still remained under military control, but by the late 1940s the first commercial services were launched.