Nonstop flight route between Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Charleroi, Wallonia, Belgium:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL), Charleroi, Wallonia, Belgium would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,318 miles (or 16,605 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 Essendon Airport and Brussels South Charleroi 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 Essendon Airport and Brussels South Charleroi 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 Essendon Airport (MEB):

• A variety of aircraft were used through Essendon in the 1960s - Lockheed L-188 Electras.
• The furthest airport from Essendon Airport (MEB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Essendon Airport (meaning Essendon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,192 miles (19,620 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• International flights departed mainly from Sydney during Essendon's years of operation, and there were regular daily flights between the two largest metropolitan areas in Australia.
• The airfield itself also has undergone a major upgrade with the installation of lighting and signage systems to bring the airport to International Civil Aviation Organization standards.
• The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
• In addition to being known as "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".
• The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions.
• Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
• In 1959 Cabinet approved the acquisition of 2,167 ha in Tullamarine for the purpose of a new international airport, which began construction in the 1960s and was ready to handle aircraft by 1967, but not passenger flights.
• The major passenger airlines using Essendon in the postwar years until scheduled air services were transferred to Tullamarine were Ansett Airlines and Trans Australia Airlines.
• In November 2007 Essendon Airport released its latest master plan.
• Because of Essendon Airport's relatively low elevation of 282 feet, planes can take off or land at Essendon 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.

Facts about Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL):

• Operations at Brussels-South Charleroi grew in the 1990s, with a new commercial management structure and the arrival of Irish low cost airline Ryanair in 1997, which opened its first continental base at Charleroi a few years later.
• Brussels South Charleroi Airport handled 6,516,427 passengers last year.
• Local TEC buses run between the airport and Charleroi railway station.
• Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) currently has only 1 runway.
• A special bus operates to Charleroi-South railway station.
• The furthest airport from Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,975 miles (19,272 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The European Commission objected to assistance the airport offered to Ryanair, since the airport is owned by the Wallonia regional government and thus the discounts and other benefits could be considered state aid.
• Because of Brussels South Charleroi Airport's relatively low elevation of 614 feet, planes can take off or land at Brussels South Charleroi 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.
• In addition to being known as "Brussels South Charleroi Airport", another name for CRL is "Aéroport de Charleroi Bruxelles Sud".
• The first aeronautical activities in Gosselies date back to 1919 as a flying school, then aeronautical maintenance activities the following year.
• The closest airport to Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) is Brussels Airport (BRU), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) N of CRL.