Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Birmingham, Alabama, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM), Birmingham, Alabama, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,332 miles (or 5,363 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 Merrill Field and Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International 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 Merrill Field and Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International 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 Merrill Field (MRI):

• The furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The offices of the Alaska Dispatch, parent company of the Anchorage Daily News, are located on Merrill Field.
• The airstrip is still in use today as the primary field for private wheel equipped aircraft in the warmer months and for ski equipped in the winter.
• Merrill Field is a public-use general aviation airport located one mile east of downtown Anchorage in the U.S.
• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill 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.
• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.

Facts about Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM):

• Commercial air service to Birmingham began in 1928 by St.
• The furthest airport from Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,183 miles (17,998 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• During the 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion, pilots and crews from the Alabama Air National Guard's 117th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing at Birmingham were selected to train Cuban exile fliers in Nicaragua to fly the Douglas B-26 Invader in the close air support role.
• Former concourse B consisted of 6 gates, B1-B6.
• The Southern Museum of Flight is on Airport Authority property, on the east side of the North-South runway.
• Because of Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport's relatively low elevation of 650 feet, planes can take off or land at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth 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.
• By 1959 Runway 5/23 was 10,000 feet and service was started to Birmingham by Capital Airlines with British-made Vickers Viscounts.
• The closest airport to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) is St. Clair County Airport (PLR), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) E of BHM.
• Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) has 2 runways.
• Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport averages 301 aircraft operations a day, including 136 flights to 43 airports in 40 cities.