Nonstop flight route between Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Rabaul, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST), Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Rabaul Airport (RAB), Rabaul, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,685 miles (or 13,978 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 Rabaul 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 Rabaul 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):

• 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.
• In 1946, the service was taken over by KLM, using DC-3 Dakotas.
• An ILS system, which allows landings in poor weather, was built in 1967, for runway 22 only.
• The international air traffic control area control centre for EUROCONTROL was built at the airport.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) currently has only 1 runway.
• Authority over what was to become known as Beek airfield, was officially transferred to the Dutch government on 1 August 1945.
• 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 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.
• Plans for an airport in southern Limburg date back as far as 1919, with various locations being considered.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport handled 36,300 passengers last year.

Facts about Rabaul Airport (RAB):

• Because of Rabaul Airport's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Rabaul 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.
• Prior to the 1994 volcanic eruption that destroyed the town of Rabaul, the airport was located at the foot of Tavurvur volcano, near Matupit island.
• The furthest airport from Rabaul Airport (RAB) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,780 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
• In addition to being known as "Rabaul Airport", another name for RAB is "Tokua Airport".
• Rabaul Airport (RAB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Rabaul Airport (RAB) is Namatanai Airport (ATN), which is located 47 miles (75 kilometers) N of RAB.