Nonstop flight route between Kansas City, Missouri, United States and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kansas City International Airport (MCI), Kansas City, Missouri, United States and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,270 miles (or 6,873 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 Kansas City 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 Kansas City 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 Kansas City International Airport (MCI):

• The airport was across US 71 from the Red Crown Tourist Court, where outlaws Bonnie and Clyde engaged in a 1933 shootout with law enforcement, which led to the death of Clyde's brother Buck Barrow and the capture of Buck's wife Blanche Barrow.
• Shortly after the airport opened, TWA asked that the terminals be rebuilt to address these issues.
• Kansas City International Airport handled 10,148,524 passengers last year.
• Kansas City International Airport (MCI) has 3 runways.
• After the establishment of the Transportation Security Administration, MCI was one of five airports where the TSA has experimented with using independent contractors to provide all traveler inspector services.
• TWA's vision for the future of flight which had been pioneered by the TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport in New York City proved obsolete almost from the start.
• The furthest airport from Kansas City International Airport (MCI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,750 miles (17,301 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Many design decisions were driven by TWA, which envisioned it would be its hub, with 747s and Supersonic Transports whisking people from America's heartland to all points on the globe.
• The closest airport to Kansas City International Airport (MCI) is Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) WNW of MCI.
• Kansas City was planning to build an airport with room for 10,000-foot runways and knew the downtown airport wouldn't do.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• On 14 January 2004, the 420th Air Base Group was established at RAF Fairford to improve the control of its geographically separated units that had been aligned beneath the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.