Nonstop flight route between Jackson, Tennessee, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL), Jackson, Tennessee, United States and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,145 miles (or 5,062 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 McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport and Elmendorf Air Force 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 McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport and Elmendorf Air Force 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 McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL):

• McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport is named in memory of Kenneth Douglas McKellar, a U.S.
• McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL) has 2 runways.
• Because of McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 434 feet, planes can take off or land at McKellar-Sipes Regional 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 furthest airport from McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,072 miles (17,819 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• As per the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 134 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 1,502 in 2009, and 2,545 in 2010.
• The closest airport to McKellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL) is Roscoe Turner Airport (CRX), which is located 50 miles (81 kilometers) SSE of MKL.

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Air defense forces reached their zenith in 1957 with almost 200 fighter aircraft assigned to six fighter interceptor squadrons located at Elmendorf AFB and Ladd AFB.
• The Department of Defense proposed a major realignment of the base as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program announced on 13 May 2005.
• On 28 July 2010, a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base, killing all four air crew members.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The first Air Force unit to be assigned to Alaska, the 18th Pursuit Squadron, arrived in February 1941.
• Following World War II, Elmendorf assumed an increasing role in the defense of North America as the uncertain wartime relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated into the Cold War.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.