Nonstop flight route between Sacramento, California, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sacramento Mather Airport (MHR), Sacramento, California, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,055 miles (or 4,916 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 Sacramento Mather Airport and Thule Air Base, 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 Sacramento Mather Airport and Thule Air Base. 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 Sacramento Mather Airport (MHR):

• On February 17, 2000 an Emery Worldwide DC-8 cargo plane crashed shortly after takeoff from this airport.
• Sacramento Mather Airport (MHR) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Sacramento Mather Airport (MHR) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,278 miles (18,150 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Because of Sacramento Mather Airport's relatively low elevation of 96 feet, planes can take off or land at Sacramento Mather 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.
• The closest airport to Sacramento Mather Airport (MHR) is Sacramento Airport McClellan Airfield (MCC), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) NW of MHR.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
• Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
• Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
• Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• Thule Air Base is home to the 21st Space Wing's global network of sensors providing missile warning, space surveillance and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.
• After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over U.S.
• Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.