Nonstop flight route between Falkland Islands and Misawa, Aomori, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands and Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ), Misawa, Aomori, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 11,225 miles (or 18,064 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 Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō, 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 Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō. 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):

• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.
• Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.
• RAF Mount Pleasant is the newest permanent airfield in the Royal Air Force.
• Mount Pleasant was opened by Prince Andrew on 12 May 1985, becoming fully operational the following year.
• 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.
• A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
• 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.
• 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 Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ):

• The furthest airport from Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,479 miles (18,473 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• In addition to being known as "Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō", another name for MSJ is "Misawa AB".
• After the Soviet Union shot down an RB-29 aircraft on November 7, 1954, the 39th provided fighter escort for all friendly reconnaissance aircraft flying near Soviet territory and the Northern Air Defense Sector.
• The closest airport to Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ) is JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) SSE of MSJ.
• The first operational fighter wing was the 49th Fighter-Bomber Group, being reassigned to Misawa on March 31, 1948.
• Before the outbreak of World War II, Lake Ogawara at Misawa was used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service to practice for the attack on Pearl Harbor.