Nonstop flight route between Falkland Islands and Shetland Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands and Scatsta Airport (SCS), Shetland Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,375 miles (or 13,479 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 Scatsta 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 RAF Mount Pleasant and Scatsta 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.

Facts about Scatsta Airport (SCS):

• The furthest airport from Scatsta Airport (SCS) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,409 miles (18,361 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Scatsta Airport (SCS) currently has only 1 runway.
• In November 1944 Scatsta was used as a support base and diversion point for Lancasters from squadron 617, the famous "Dam Busters", led by Wing Commander J.
• The closest airport to Scatsta Airport (SCS) is Tingwall Airport (LWK), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) S of SCS.
• The first flight of the day from Scatsta to Aberdeen has no passengers from offshore – and can have anything up to about 60 passengers during the height of the season, although the figure is more commonly between 15 and 25 on an average day.
• Because of Scatsta Airport's relatively low elevation of 81 feet, planes can take off or land at Scatsta 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.