Nonstop flight route between Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST), Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX), Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,784 miles (or 6,089 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 NAS JRB Willow Grove, 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 NAS JRB Willow Grove. 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):

• Because of the proximity to the new headquarters, the decision was made to create a temporary airfield between the towns of Beek, Geulle and Ulestraten.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• The Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre of the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation is also located on the airport.
• Substantial investments in the airport infrastructure have been made since the privatization.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport handled 36,300 passengers last year.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• In 1973 the airport was expanded again to handle bigger aircraft.

Facts about NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX):

• The furthest airport from NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,726 miles (18,871 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• On May 28, 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure commission recommended that NAS JRB Willow Grove be closed as part of the 2005 BRAC round, that the tenant Air Force Reserve Command airlift wing be inactivated and that Navy Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve flying units relocate to McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey as tenant units.
• The closest airport to NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) is Wings Field (BBX), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) SW of NXX.
• Currently, the 111th Fighter Wing, operating the A-10 Thunderbolt II, has lost all its aircraft to other ANG Squadrons under BRAC.
• On February 29, 2008, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania released a report detailing a plan for a joint interagency installation, with a mission of national defense, homeland security and emergency preparedness.
• NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of NAS JRB Willow Grove's relatively low elevation of 335 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS JRB Willow Grove 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.