Nonstop flight route between Minden, Nevada, United States and Surat Thani, Thailand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Minden-Tahoe Airport (MEV), Minden, Nevada, United States and Surat Thani International Airport (URT), Surat Thani, Thailand would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,279 miles (or 13,324 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 Minden-Tahoe Airport and Surat Thani 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 Minden-Tahoe Airport and Surat Thani 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 Minden-Tahoe Airport (MEV):

• Gliders are usually towed to altitudes of 1,000 to 2,000 ft over the airport, and they are often able to make out and return flights to the White Mountains, Owens Valley, and Eastern Nevada, often covering distances of over 500 mi.
• Because of Minden-Tahoe Airport's high elevation of 4,722 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at MEV. Combined with a high temperature, this could make MEV a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Minden-Tahoe Airport (MEV) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,200 miles (18,025 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Minden-Tahoe Airport (MEV) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Minden-Tahoe Airport (MEV) is Carson Airport (CSN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) N of MEV.
• Minden-Tahoe Airport is the base for the "Introduction to Soaring" tutorial mission supplied with Microsoft Flight Simulator X.
• During the winter months, the famous Sierra mountain wave can carry gliders well over 25,000 ft, with the Minden record well over 40,000 ft.

Facts about Surat Thani International Airport (URT):

• The furthest airport from Surat Thani International Airport (URT) is Capitán FAP Carlos Martínez de Pinillos International Airport (TRU), which is nearly antipodal to Surat Thani International Airport (meaning Surat Thani International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Capitán FAP Carlos Martínez de Pinillos International Airport), and is located 12,297 miles (19,789 kilometers) away in Trujillo, Peru.
• The closest airport to Surat Thani International Airport (URT) is Ranong Airport (UNN), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NW of URT.
• Surat Thani International Airport (URT) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Surat Thani International Airport's relatively low elevation of 286 feet, planes can take off or land at Surat Thani 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.
• On 11 December 1998, Thai Airways International Flight 261, an A310-200 bound for Surat Thani from Bangkok, was making its third landing attempt in heavy rain when it crashed into a rice paddy about 2 miles from the airport.
• In addition to being known as "Surat Thani International Airport", another name for URT is "ท่าอากาศยานสุราษฎร์ธานี".