Nonstop flight route between Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Seattle, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Melbourne Airport (MEL), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and King County International Airport (BFI), Seattle, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,189 miles (or 13,179 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 Melbourne Airport and King County International 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 Melbourne Airport and King County International 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 Melbourne Airport (MEL):

• On 1 July 1970, Melbourne Airport was opened to international operations by Prime Minister John Gorton, ending Essendon's near 2-decade run as Melbourne International Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Melbourne Airport", another name for MEL is "Tullamarine Airport".
• Although described as a satellite terminal, the terminal building is connected by an above-ground corridor to Terminal 2.
• Melbourne Airport (MEL) has 2 runways.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• Since privatisation, further improvements to infrastructure have begun at the airport, including expansion of runways, car parks and terminals.

Facts about King County International Airport (BFI):

• The initial assembly of the 737 was at Boeing Field in the 1960s because the factory in Renton was at capacity building the 707 and 727.
• The airport's property is mostly in Seattle just south of Georgetown, with its southern tip extending into Tukwila.
• King County International Airport (BFI) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to King County International Airport (BFI) is Renton Municipal Airport (RNT), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) ESE of BFI.
• The King County International Airport contracts with the King County Sheriff's Office for police services.
• Because of King County International Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at King County 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.
• In addition to being known as "King County International Airport", another name for BFI is "Boeing Field".
• The furthest airport from King County International Airport (BFI) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,775 miles (17,341 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.