Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from MRI to THU:
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- About this route
- MRI Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about MRI
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to MRI
- List of Nearest Airports to MRI
- Map of Furthest Airports from MRI
- List of Furthest Airports from MRI
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,044 miles (or 3,290 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 relatively short distance between Merrill Field and Thule Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MRI / PAMR |
Airport Name: | Merrill Field |
Location: | Anchorage, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°12'48"N by 149°50'39"W |
Operator/Owner: | Municipality of Anchorage |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 137 feet (42 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from MRI |
More Information: | MRI Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
View all routes: | Routes from THU |
More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Merrill Field (MRI):
- Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
- 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 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.
- The offices of the Alaska Dispatch, parent company of the Anchorage Daily News, are located on Merrill Field.
- The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
- Merrill Field, located on the east end of 5th Avenue in Anchorage, Alaska, was the only airport serving Anchorage until 1951 when the introduction of ever larger and faster commercial aircraft required that an airfield with longer and heavier runways be built.
- 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.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
- Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
- Thule Air Base is home to the 21st Space Wing's global network of sensors providing missile warning, space surveillance and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.
- The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag Dannebrog must be side by side with Stars and Stripes on the base.