Nonstop flight route between Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States and Istres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC), Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,205 miles (or 6,768 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 Selfridge Air National Guard Base and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Selfridge Air National Guard Base and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. 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 Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC):

• The furthest airport from Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,298 miles (18,182 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Air races at Selfridge from 1922 through the 1930s included the first John Mitchell Trophy Race, the Pulitzer Trophy Race, and the Curtiss Trophy Race and Boeing Trophy.
• The closest airport to Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC) is Coleman A. Young International Airport (DET), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) SSW of MTC.
• On 9 July, the first training aircraft, a Curtiss JN-4D arrived at the new airfield, and the base was gearing up to train men in flying, bombing, radio and photography for the war effort.
• The on-base Selfridge Military Air Museum is operated by the Michigan Air Guard Historical Association, exhibits photos and artifacts of military aerospace history, and has an outdoor Air Park of over 30 aircraft.
• Flying was considered impractical in Michigan during the winter months, so the student pilots were sent to Gerstner Field at Lake Charles, Louisiana, and to Chapman Field at Miami, Florida, and Selfridge was transformed into a mechanics school for the winter months.
• In the fall of 1959, the inactivation of Tenth Air Force began, and the \as completed by July 1960.
• In addition to being known as "Selfridge Air National Guard Base", another name for MTC is "Selfridge ANGB".

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Base aérienne 125 Istres Advanced Landing Ground Y-17
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
• Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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 Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.