Nonstop flight route between Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Datong, Shanxi, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Melbourne Airport (MEL), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Datong Yungang Airport (DAT), Datong, Shanxi, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,726 miles (or 9,216 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 Datong Yungang 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 Datong Yungang 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):

• An expansion of the terminal was approved in 1989 and completed in 1991 when a second pier was added by Ansett to the south for use by smaller regional airline Kendell.
• Opened with Melbourne Airport in 1970 for Trans Australia Airlines, the terminal passed to Qantas in 1992 when they acquired the airline.
• Melbourne Airport handled 2,998,000 passengers last year.
• 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 was originally called Tullamarine Airport, after the adjacent suburb of the same name.
• The closest airport to Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Essendon Airport (MEB), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SE of MEL.
• A$330 million expansion programme for Terminal 2 was announced in 2007.
• Since privatisation, further improvements to infrastructure have begun at the airport, including expansion of runways, car parks and terminals.
• In addition to being known as "Melbourne Airport", another name for MEL is "Tullamarine Airport".
• Melbourne Airport (MEL) has 2 runways.
• The search for a replacement for Essendon commenced in February 1958, when a panel was appointed to assess Melbourne's civil aviation needs.
• 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.

Facts about Datong Yungang Airport (DAT):

• The furthest airport from Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) is Antoine de Saint Exupéry Airport (OES), which is nearly antipodal to Datong Yungang Airport (meaning Datong Yungang Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Antoine de Saint Exupéry Airport), and is located 12,345 miles (19,868 kilometers) away in San Antonio Oeste, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) is Zhangjiakou Ningyuan Airport (ZQZ), which is located 89 miles (144 kilometers) ENE of DAT.
• Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) currently has only 1 runway.
• Datong Yungang Airport handled 117,423 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Datong Yungang Airport", other names for DAT include "大同云冈机场" and "Dàtóng Yúngāng Jīchǎng".