Nonstop flight route between New Orleans, Louisiana, United States and Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY), New Orleans, Louisiana, United States and Richards Bay Airport (RCB), Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,002 miles (or 14,488 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 Richards Bay 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 Richards Bay 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):

• On November 16, 1959 National Airlines Flight 967, a Douglas DC-7 flying from Tampa to New Orleans crashed into the Gulf of Mexico.
• Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) has 2 runways.
• In 1969 Braniff International Airways started direct Boeing 707-320 jet service twice a week to Hawaii.
• At an average of 4.5 feet above sea level, MSY is the 2nd lowest-lying international airport in the world, behind only Amsterdam's Schiphol International Airport in the Netherlands, which is eleven feet below sea level.
• 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.
• 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.
• The airport was closed to commercial air traffic on August 28, 2005, shortly before Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, and it remained closed as floods affected the city.
• Another local service airline at New Orleans was Texas International with Douglas DC-9s and Convair 600s mainly to Louisiana and Texas.
• In addition to being known as "Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport", another name for MSY is "Moisant Field".
• 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.
• Japan Airlines used New Orleans as a stop for "special schedule" service between Tokyo, Japan and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in the mid 1960s and early 1970s.

Facts about Richards Bay Airport (RCB):

• Because of Richards Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 109 feet, planes can take off or land at Richards Bay 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 Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hluhluwe Airport (HLW), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) NNE of RCB.
• The furthest airport from Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,689 miles (18,812 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Richards Bay Airport (RCB) currently has only 1 runway.