Nonstop flight route between Luqa, Malta and Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malta International Airport (MLA), Luqa, Malta and Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR), Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,609 miles (or 15,464 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 Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field), 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 Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field). 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):

• 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 first civil airfield was constructed at Ta' Qali, followed by others at Ħal Far and Luqa.
• Malta International Airport handled 405,200 passengers last year.
• 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 Malta Airport MetOffice is part of the Malta International Airport and provides the function of a national meteorological service for Malta.
• In addition to being known as "Malta International Airport", other names for MLA include "Luqa Airport" and "Valletta Airport".
• Malta International Airport is well-served by public transport.
• Car hire companies including Avis, Hertz, Thrifty, First Car Rental and Active Car Rental are located in the Welcomers' Hall.
• 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.

Facts about Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR):

• Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Mbambanakira Airport (MBU), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) SSW of HIR.
• The furthest airport from Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Cap Skirring Airport (CSK), which is nearly antipodal to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (meaning Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap Skirring Airport), and is located 12,138 miles (19,533 kilometers) away in Cap Skirring, Senegal.
• Henderson Field was named for Marine Major Lofton Henderson, commanding officer of VMSB-241 who was killed in action at the Battle of Midway while leading his squadron into action against the Japanese carrier forces thereby becoming the first Marine aviator to perish during the battle.
• Control of the airstrip was the focus of months of fighting in the Guadalcanal campaign during World War II.
• Because of Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field)'s relatively low elevation of 28 feet, planes can take off or land at Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) 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.