Nonstop flight route between Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Mbandaka, Democratic Republic of the Congo:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST), Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Mbandaka Airport (MDK), Mbandaka, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,592 miles (or 5,781 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 Maastricht Aachen Airport and Mbandaka 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 Maastricht Aachen Airport and Mbandaka 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 Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST):

• The international air traffic control area control centre for EUROCONTROL was built at the airport.
• The furthest airport from Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,935 miles (19,207 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• As Nazi Germany was rapidly collapsing, the front was already well into Germany by the time the field was ready, and no direct combat sorties were operated from Y-44.
• The field was built in less than 2 months and was operational on 22 March 1945, and was designated Y-44.
• A promotion campaign by the Dutch tourist board for the nearby town of Valkenburg aan de Geul, aimed at British tourists, was highly successful and brought services by Invicta Airlines, Britannia and Channel Airways.
• Plans for an airport in southern Limburg date back as far as 1919, with various locations being considered.
• An ILS system, which allows landings in poor weather, was built in 1967, for runway 22 only.
• The late 1950s and early 1960s brought significant expansion in commercial operations at the airport.
• The closest airport to Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) is NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) ENE of MST.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) currently has only 1 runway.
• In July 2004, a 100% share in the airport was acquired by OmDV, a consortium of airport investment company Omniport and the construction company Dura Vermeer, making it the first fully privatised airport in the Netherlands.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport is a regional airport in Beek, Netherlands, located 5 NM northeast of Maastricht and 15 NM northwest of Aachen, Germany.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport handled 36,300 passengers last year.
• Because of Maastricht Aachen Airport's relatively low elevation of 375 feet, planes can take off or land at Maastricht Aachen 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.

Facts about Mbandaka Airport (MDK):

• The furthest airport from Mbandaka Airport (MDK) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is nearly antipodal to Mbandaka Airport (meaning Mbandaka Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cassidy International Airport), and is located 12,105 miles (19,481 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• In addition to being known as "Mbandaka Airport", other names for MDK include "Aéroport de Mbandaka" and "Mbandaka Airport".
• The closest airport to Mbandaka Airport (MDK) is Impfondo Airport (ION), which is located 110 miles (176 kilometers) N of MDK.
• Mbandaka Airport (MDK) currently has only 1 runway.