Nonstop flight route between Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Omaha, Nebraska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mackay Airport (MKY), Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Offutt Air Force Base (OFF), Omaha, Nebraska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,446 miles (or 13,592 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 Offutt 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 Mackay Airport and Offutt 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 Mackay Airport (MKY):

• Mackay Airport handled 1,049,172 passengers last year.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mackay Airport (MKY) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Mackay Airport (MKY) is Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NNW of MKY.
• In the year 2008, the airport handled 837,416 passengers making it the 15th busiest airport in Australia.
• 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.
• 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 Offutt Air Force Base (OFF):

• At one minute past midnight, on 9 November 1948, Offutt gained international prominence when it became the host base for Headquarters Strategic Air Command, which was moved from Andrews AFB, Maryland.
• In 1918, the 61st Balloon Company of the Army Air Corps was assigned to Fort Crook at the close of World War I, which performed combat reconnaissance training.
• The closest airport to Offutt Air Force Base (OFF) is Millard Airport (MIQ), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) WNW of OFF.
• During the Cold War, a general and various support personnel from the base were airborne 24-hours a day on an EC-135 from 3 February 1961 to 24 July 1990 in Operation Looking Glass, creating an airborne command post in case of war.
• In addition to being known as "Offutt Air Force Base", another name for OFF is "Offutt AFB".
• Offutt AFB's legacy includes the construction of the first two bombers to drop atomic bombs and over 40 years as the headquarters for the former Strategic Air Command and home for its associated ground and aerial command centers for the U.S.
• It is charged with space operations, information operations, missile defense, global command and control, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, global strike and strategic deterrence, and combating weapons of mass destruction.
• The furthest airport from Offutt Air Force Base (OFF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,677 miles (17,183 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.