Nonstop flight route between Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Avarua, Cook Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mackay Airport (MKY), Mackay, Queensland, Australia and Rarotonga International Airport (RAR), Avarua, Cook Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,271 miles (or 5,265 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 Rarotonga International 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 Rarotonga International 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.
• Mackay Airport handled 1,049,172 passengers last year.
• In the year 2008, the airport handled 837,416 passengers making it the 15th busiest airport in Australia.
• 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.
• Moves to establish an airport at Mackay began in 1927, when Captain Ron Adair selected the site of the town commons for the construction of an aerodrome, and landed the first plane in Mackay there, his own Avro biplane.
• Mackay Airport (MKY) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Mackay Airport (MKY) is Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NNW of MKY.

Facts about Rarotonga International Airport (RAR):

• The closest airport to Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) is Mangaia Island Airport (MGS), which is located 131 miles (211 kilometers) ESE of RAR.
• In 2003, the terminal and departure and check-in areas were revamped at a cost of US$650,000.
• Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) currently has only 1 runway.
• An Air New Zealand Boeing 767 airliner at Rarotonga International Airport
• The furthest airport from Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) is Faya-Largeau Airport (FYT), which is nearly antipodal to Rarotonga International Airport (meaning Rarotonga International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Faya-Largeau Airport), and is located 12,199 miles (19,632 kilometers) away in Faya-Largeau, Chad.
• Because of Rarotonga International Airport's relatively low elevation of 19 feet, planes can take off or land at Rarotonga International 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.