Nonstop flight route between Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Spearfish, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST), Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands and Black Hills Airport (SPF), Spearfish, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,618 miles (or 7,432 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 Black Hills 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 Black Hills 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 runway was 5,565 feet and reinforced with pierced steel planks.
• 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.
• On 14 May 1985, Pope John Paul II held an open air mass for 50,000 people at the airport, as part of his visit to the Netherlands.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport handled 36,300 passengers last year.
• In March 2011, the airport was certified to handle the upcoming Boeing 747-8, as two of the airports major airlines Cargolux and AirBridge Cargo have placed orders for this aircraft.
• 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.
• The late 1950s and early 1960s brought significant expansion in commercial operations at the airport.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) currently has only 1 runway.
• After the allied invasion of Normandy, the USAAF Ninth Air Force, specifically the IX Engineer Command, was tasked with constructing temporary airfields close to the advancing front.
• 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.
• 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.
• In 1973 the airport was expanded again to handle bigger aircraft.

Facts about Black Hills Airport (SPF):

• In addition to being known as "Black Hills Airport", another name for SPF is "Clyde Ice Field".
• The closest airport to Black Hills Airport (SPF) is Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) ESE of SPF.
• Black Hills Airport (SPF) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Black Hills Airport (SPF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,576 miles (17,020 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.