Nonstop flight route between Makokou, Gabon and Canton Island, Kiribati:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Makokou Airport (MKU), Makokou, Gabon and Canton Island Airport (CIS), Canton Island, Kiribati would travel a Great Circle distance of 12,085 miles (or 19,449 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 Makokou Airport and Canton Island 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 Makokou Airport and Canton Island Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

The distance between MKU and CIS makes them almost exactly antipodal (the exact opposite side of the world) to each other. Nonstop flights between Makokou Airport and Canton Island Airport would be very impractical for the airlines, because only a lightly loaded Boeing 777-200LR would be able to make the trip. Since airlines need to be able to take as many people and cargo as possible in order to make a profit, the odds of ever seeing a nonstop flight between MKU and CIS are slim to none. However, you'll still be able to get from Makokou, Gabon and Canton Island, Kiribati by taking some connecting flights!

Did you know that one full circling of the Earth (measuring from the equator) is about 24,901.5 miles (or 40,075 kilometers), which means if you were 12,450 miles from any given point on the planet, the distance back to your starting point would be about the same -- in any direction! The same can be said for a nonstop flight between MKU and CIS!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Makokou Airport (MKU):

• The closest airport to Makokou Airport (MKU) is Kelle Airport (KEE), which is located 122 miles (197 kilometers) ESE of MKU.
• Makokou Airport (MKU) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Makokou Airport (MKU) is Canton Island Airport (CIS), which is nearly antipodal to Makokou Airport (meaning Makokou Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Canton Island Airport), and is located 12,085 miles (19,449 kilometers) away in Canton Island, Kiribati.

Facts about Canton Island Airport (CIS):

• The closest airport to Canton Island Airport (CIS) is Funafuti International Airport (FUN), which is located 741 miles (1,193 kilometers) WSW of CIS.
• The Pan American pioneered central air route, Hawaii to the Philippines and Asia by way of stations at Midway, Wake and Guam passed through the Japanese controlled islands with serious concerns about its safety growing in 1941 even as the Army had reinforced the Philippines with a flight of B-17 bombers by way of Midway, Wake and Port Moresby in September.
• The political status of the island was uncertain at first, with American and British settlers occupying two separate camps on the island.
• Because of Canton Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Canton Island 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.
• Though Kanton Island was never physically invaded by Japanese forces, the airfield was bombarded on 1 November 1943 by the Japanese submarine I-36.
• The furthest airport from Canton Island Airport (CIS) is Malabo International Airport (SSG), which is nearly antipodal to Canton Island Airport (meaning Canton Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Malabo International Airport), and is located 12,363 miles (19,896 kilometers) away in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
• Canton Island Airport (CIS) currently has only 1 runway.