Nonstop flight route between Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Lewiston, Idaho, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mackay Airport (MKY), Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport (LWS), Lewiston, Idaho, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,442 miles (or 11,976 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 Mackay Airport and Lewiston-Nez Perce County 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 Mackay Airport and Lewiston-Nez Perce County 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 Mackay Airport (MKY):

• Mackay Airport had grass landing strips until 1940, when the Commonwealth Government extended the airport's boundaries and upgraded the runways to unsealed gravel for use during World War II.
• In 1938, the airport held an airshow featuring ten aircraft, which attracted over 8,000 spectators.
• In January 2010, Auckland International Airport Limited, announced plans to purchase almost 25 per cent of North Queensland Airports, operator of the airports at Cairns and Mackay, for about $167 million.
• The closest airport to Mackay Airport (MKY) is Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NNW of MKY.
• Mackay Airport handled 1,049,172 passengers last year.
• Mackay Airport (MKY) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Mackay Airport (MKY) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,973 miles (19,269 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• Mackay is a thriving mining, agricultural, industrial and regional business centre that also supports a growing tourism industry and is a gateway to the Whitsunday coast and islands.
• Despite the collapse of airlines Ansett Australia and Flight West Airlines in 2001, Mackay Airport has experienced considerable growth in recent years, due to the use of the airport by Virgin Australia and the expansion of QantasLink services, and handles over 620,000 passengers through the terminal per annum but that has slowed and the airport is up for sale.
• In the year 2008, the airport handled 837,416 passengers making it the 15th busiest airport in Australia.
• Because of Mackay Airport's relatively low elevation of 19 feet, planes can take off or land at Mackay 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.

Facts about Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport (LWS):

• Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport (LWS) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport (LWS) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,717 miles (17,248 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The 2013 Federal sequester will result in the closure of the airport's contract control tower and will require pilots to rely on air traffic controllers from other area airports.
• The closest airport to Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport (LWS) is Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport (PUW), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) N of LWS.
• The municipal golf course adjacent to the west, Bryden Canyon, was designed and built in the early 1970s, and opened in March 1975.