Nonstop flight route between Massawa, Eritrea and Berlin, Germany:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MSW to GWW:
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- About this route
- MSW Airport Information
- GWW Airport Information
- Facts about MSW
- Facts about GWW
- Map of Nearest Airports to MSW
- List of Nearest Airports to MSW
- Map of Furthest Airports from MSW
- List of Furthest Airports from MSW
- Map of Nearest Airports to GWW
- List of Nearest Airports to GWW
- Map of Furthest Airports from GWW
- List of Furthest Airports from GWW
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Massawa International Airport (MSW), Massawa, Eritrea and Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW), Berlin, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,918 miles (or 4,696 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 Massawa International Airport and Royal Air Force Station Gatow, 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 Massawa International Airport and Royal Air Force Station Gatow. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MSW / HHMS |
| Airport Name: | Massawa International Airport |
| Location: | Massawa, Eritrea |
| GPS Coordinates: | 15°40'59"N by 39°22'5"E |
| Area Served: | Massawa |
| Airport Type: | Military/Public |
| Elevation: | 206 feet (63 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MSW |
| More Information: | MSW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GWW / EDBG |
| Airport Name: | Royal Air Force Station Gatow |
| Location: | Berlin, Germany |
| GPS Coordinates: | 52°28'27"N by 13°8'17"E |
| Operator/Owner: | formerly: Ministry of Defence, now: Bundeswehr |
| Airport Type: | Military (airport no longer in operation) |
| Elevation: | 161 feet (49 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GWW |
| More Information: | GWW Maps & Info |
Facts about Massawa International Airport (MSW):
- Massawa International Airport is an airport in Massawa, a major city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea.
- Massawa International Airport (MSW) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Massawa International Airport's relatively low elevation of 206 feet, planes can take off or land at Massawa International 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 furthest airport from Massawa International Airport (MSW) is Fangatau Airport (FGU), which is nearly antipodal to Massawa International Airport (meaning Massawa International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Fangatau Airport), and is located 12,417 miles (19,984 kilometers) away in Fangatau, French Polynesia.
- As of 2014, the airport only hosts domestic flights since the companies that formed it do not have an international license.
- The closest airport to Massawa International Airport (MSW) is Asmara International Airport (ASM), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) SW of MSW.
- The Eritrea Investment Centre has proposed a new $60 million development project at the airport.
Facts about Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW):
- Because of Royal Air Force Station Gatow's relatively low elevation of 161 feet, planes can take off or land at Royal Air Force Station Gatow 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 Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) is Berlin Tegel Airport (TXL), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NE of GWW.
- After the Berlin Blockade, RAF Gatow served as an airfield for the British Army's Berlin Infantry Brigade, and was prepared to revert to its role as a supply base, if another Berlin Airlift to West Berlin ever became necessary.
- The first landing by a Royal Air Force aircraft was by Avro Anson serial number PW698 on 2 July 1945 at 11.55 hours.
- The furthest airport from Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,694 miles (18,819 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- In November 1948, the latest RAF transport aircraft, the Handley Page Hastings, was added to the squadrons flying into RAF Gatow and some aircrews and aircraft were redeployed to train replacement aircrews.
- The closest military neighbour to RAF Gatow was a tank unit of the National People's Army of East Germany.
- Royal Air Force Station Gatow (GWW) currently has only 1 runway.
- To commemorate Australian participation in the Airlift, the Royal Australian Air Force presented RAF Gatow with a retired Douglas Dakota in the 1980s, to use as a gate guardian.
- The airfield was originally constructed in 1934 and 1935 by the Luftwaffe as a staff and technical college, Luftkriegsschule 2 Berlin-Gatow, in imitation of the Royal Air Force College at RAF Cranwell.
