Nonstop flight route between Luqa, Malta and Gweru, Zimbabwe:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malta International Airport (MLA), Luqa, Malta and Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE), Gweru, Zimbabwe would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,951 miles (or 6,358 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 Malta International Airport and Gweru-Thornhill 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 Malta International Airport and Gweru-Thornhill 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 Malta International Airport (MLA):

• There was a small increase in the volume of traffic that passed through Malta International Airport in 2011.
• The closest airport to Malta International Airport (MLA) is Xewkija / Gozo Heliport (GZM), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NW of MLA.
• The foundation stone of the present air terminal was laid in September 1989 and inaugurated in record time 29 months later in February 1992.
• Malta International Airport handled 405,200 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Malta International Airport", other names for MLA include "Luqa Airport" and "Valletta Airport".
• Because of Malta International Airport's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Malta 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.
• Malta International Airport (MLA) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Malta International Airport (MLA) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,639 miles (18,731 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport car parking has considerably increased during 2009.
• Malta International Airport is well-served by public transport.
• Arriva Malta buses serve the airport.
• The Malta Airport MetOffice is part of the Malta International Airport and provides the function of a national meteorological service for Malta.

Facts about Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE):

• Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is nearly antipodal to Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (meaning Gweru-Thornhill Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Hilo International Airport), and is located 12,117 miles (19,500 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Gweru-Thornhill Air Base (GWE) is Masvingo Airport (MVZ), which is located 78 miles (125 kilometers) ESE of GWE.
• Because of Gweru-Thornhill Air Base's high elevation of 4,680 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GWE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GWE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.