Nonstop flight route between New Orleans, Louisiana, United States and Gao, Mali:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY), New Orleans, Louisiana, United States and Gao International Airport (GAQ), Gao, Mali would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,678 miles (or 9,138 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 Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and Gao International 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 Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and Gao International 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 Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY):

• Because of Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport's relatively low elevation of 4 feet, planes can take off or land at Louis Armstrong New Orleans 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.
• MSY served 8,153,511 passengers in 2010, or 83.8% of the pre-Katrina high of 9,733,179 passengers in 2004, as well as the all-time high of 9.9 million passengers who used the airfield in 2000.
• The furthest airport from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,125 miles (17,905 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• On November 16, 1959 National Airlines Flight 967, a Douglas DC-7 flying from Tampa to New Orleans crashed into the Gulf of Mexico.
• MSY was the hub for short-lived Pride Air, a start-up domestic airline which flew Boeing 727-100s and 727-200s for three months in 1985.
• In addition to being known as "Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport", another name for MSY is "Moisant Field".
• On September 19, 1947 the airport was shut down as it was submerged under two feet of water in the wake of the 1947 Hurricane's impact.
• Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) is Lakefront Airport (NEW), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) ENE of MSY.
• British Airways operated nonstop service to London and Mexico City in the early 1980s with the Lockheed L-1011-500 TriStar which was the long range version of the widebody trijet.

Facts about Gao International Airport (GAQ):

• The furthest airport from Gao International Airport (GAQ) is Labasa Airport (LBS), which is nearly antipodal to Gao International Airport (meaning Gao International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Labasa Airport), and is located 12,390 miles (19,940 kilometers) away in Labasa, Fiji.
• The closest airport to Gao International Airport (GAQ) is Tambao Airport (TMQ), which is located 101 miles (162 kilometers) S of GAQ.
• Because of Gao International Airport's relatively low elevation of 870 feet, planes can take off or land at Gao 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.
• Gao International Airport (GAQ) currently has only 1 runway.