Nonstop flight route between Falkland Islands and Qaqortoq, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands and Qaqortoq Heliport (JJU), Qaqortoq, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,806 miles (or 12,563 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 RAF Mount Pleasant and Qaqortoq Heliport, 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 RAF Mount Pleasant and Qaqortoq Heliport. 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 RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
• There is also a Joint Communications Unit providing the electronic warfare and command and control systems for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force.
• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• The British government felt that Stanley airfield was not the best option for a large, permanent station and decided to construct a new RAF station and make it the centrepiece of considerably strengthened air defences for the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
• On 2 April 2012, an Uruguayan air company, Air Class Líneas Aéreas, gained permission from the Uruguayan Ministry of Defence to start a commercial flight to the Falkland Islands.
• On 10 November 2011, it was announced that Prince William would be serving as a Sea King pilot on the station for six weeks during February and March 2012.

Facts about Qaqortoq Heliport (JJU):

• The furthest airport from Qaqortoq Heliport (JJU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 11,079 miles (17,830 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• Qaqortoq Heliport handled 14,204 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Qaqortoq Heliport (JJU) is Eqalugaarsuit Heliport (QFG), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of JJU.
• Because of Qaqortoq Heliport's relatively low elevation of 53 feet, planes can take off or land at Qaqortoq Heliport 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.