Nonstop flight route between Makemo, French Polynesia and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Makemo Airport (MKP), Makemo, French Polynesia and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,095 miles (or 11,419 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 Makemo 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 Makemo 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 Makemo Airport (MKP):

• Because of Makemo Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Makemo 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 Makemo Airport (MKP) is Raroia Airport (RRR), which is located 87 miles (139 kilometers) ENE of MKP.
• The furthest airport from Makemo Airport (MKP) is Kassala Airport (KSL), which is nearly antipodal to Makemo Airport (meaning Makemo Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kassala Airport), and is located 12,354 miles (19,882 kilometers) away in Kassala, Sudan.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
• After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over U.S.
• Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.