Nonstop flight route between McKinley Park, Alaska, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MCL to THU:
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- About this route
- MCL Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about MCL
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to MCL
- List of Nearest Airports to MCL
- Map of Furthest Airports from MCL
- List of Furthest Airports from MCL
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between McKinley National Park Airport (MCL), McKinley Park, Alaska, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,878 miles (or 3,022 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 relatively short distance between McKinley National Park Airport and Thule Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MCL / PAIN |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | McKinley Park, Alaska, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 63°43'57"N by 148°54'38"W |
| Area Served: | McKinley Park, Alaska |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. National Park Service |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 1720 feet (524 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MCL |
| More Information: | MCL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about McKinley National Park Airport (MCL):
- McKinley National Park Airport (MCL) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to McKinley National Park Airport (MCL) is Summit Airport (UMM), which is located 29 miles (46 kilometers) SSW of MCL.
- The furthest airport from McKinley National Park Airport (MCL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,368 miles (16,686 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- In addition to being known as "McKinley National Park Airport", another name for MCL is "INR".
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- Thule Air Base is home to the 21st Space Wing's global network of sensors providing missile warning, space surveillance and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
- Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
- Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
- In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
