Nonstop flight route between Chicago, Illinois, United States and Nairobi, Kenya:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from MDW to WIL:
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- About this route
- MDW Airport Information
- WIL Airport Information
- Facts about MDW
- Facts about WIL
- Map of Nearest Airports to MDW
- List of Nearest Airports to MDW
- Map of Furthest Airports from MDW
- List of Furthest Airports from MDW
- Map of Nearest Airports to WIL
- List of Nearest Airports to WIL
- Map of Furthest Airports from WIL
- List of Furthest Airports from WIL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), Chicago, Illinois, United States and Wilson Airport (WIL), Nairobi, Kenya would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,014 miles (or 12,898 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 Wilson 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 Wilson Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MDW / KMDW |
Airport Name: | Chicago Midway International Airport |
Location: | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°47'9"N by 87°45'8"W |
Area Served: | Chicago, Illinois, US |
Operator/Owner: | City of Chicago |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 620 feet (189 meters) |
# of Runways: | 5 |
View all routes: | Routes from MDW |
More Information: | MDW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | WIL / HKNW |
Airport Name: | Wilson Airport |
Location: | Nairobi, Kenya |
GPS Coordinates: | 1°19'12"S by 36°48'53"E |
Area Served: | Nairobi |
Operator/Owner: | Kenya Airports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public, Civilian |
Elevation: | 5546 feet (1,690 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from WIL |
More Information: | WIL Maps & Info |
Facts about Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW):
- Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) has 5 runways.
- 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.
- In June 2004, Mayor Daley and airline officials celebrated the completion of the Terminal Development Program.
- Chicago Midway Airport is the second-largest passenger airport in the state of Illinois after Chicago O'Hare International Airport.
- 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.
- Today, Southwest Airlines is the largest airline serving Midway with 253 daily flights.
Facts about Wilson Airport (WIL):
- The closest airport to Wilson Airport (WIL) is Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) E of WIL.
- Wilson Airport (WIL) has 2 runways.
- Because of Wilson Airport's high elevation of 5,546 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at WIL. Combined with a high temperature, this could make WIL a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- In 2012 Kiss TV did a 15-minute report called dying Wilson.
- Airkenya and other small airlines use Wilson Airport for scheduled domestic passenger services, instead of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
- The airport was established in 1933 as Nairobi Aerodrome and was used by Imperial Airways Empire air mail services from the United Kingdom via Egypt and continuing in stages to South Africa.
- The furthest airport from Wilson Airport (WIL) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,619 miles (18,698 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.