Nonstop flight route between Chicago, Illinois, United States and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), Chicago, Illinois, United States and Melbourne Airport (MEL), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,671 miles (or 15,564 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 Chicago Midway International Airport and Melbourne 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 Chicago Midway International Airport and Melbourne 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 Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW):

• The Chicago Transit Authority displaced the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA terminal at the airport on October 31, 1993, for the new Chicago 'L' Orange Line that connected Midway to Chicago's Loop.
• In 1996, after failing to get his Lake Calumet Airport and having received harsh criticism for the idea of turning the airport into an industrial park, Chicago Mayor Richard M.
• Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) has 5 runways.
• Because of Chicago Midway International Airport's relatively low elevation of 620 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago Midway 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.
• The furthest airport from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,083 miles (17,836 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) NNW of MDW.
• More construction was funded in part by $1 million from the Works Progress Administration.
• In September 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel terminated negotiations to privatize the airport, noting that the process was no longer competitive after one of the two finalists had backed out.
• Continuing with the expansion project, a pedestrian bridge over Cicero Avenue was built in 2000, connecting the new terminal to the new concourses.

Facts about Melbourne Airport (MEL):

• The furthest airport from Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Melbourne Airport (meaning Melbourne Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,187 miles (19,613 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Terminal 1 hosts domestic services for Qantas Group airlines, Qantas, Jetstar and QantasLink and is located to the northern end of the building.
• Opened with Melbourne Airport in 1970 for Trans Australia Airlines, the terminal passed to Qantas in 1992 when they acquired the airline.
• Terminal 3 – opened with the airport as the Ansett Australia terminal, but is now owned by Melbourne Airport.
• Melbourne Airport handled 2,998,000 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Essendon Airport (MEB), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SE of MEL.
• Terminal 2 handles all international flights out of Melbourne Airport and the city and opened with the airport in 1970.
• The Melbourne–Sydney air route is the third most-travelled passenger air route in the world and the third busiest in the Asia Pacific region.
• In addition to being known as "Melbourne Airport", another name for MEL is "Tullamarine Airport".
• In May 1959 it was announced that a new airport would be built at Tullamarine, with Prime Minister Robert Menzies announcing on 27 November 1962 a five-year plan to provide Melbourne with a A$45 million "jetport" by 1967.
• Because of Melbourne Airport's relatively low elevation of 434 feet, planes can take off or land at Melbourne 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.
• Melbourne Airport (MEL) has 2 runways.