Nonstop flight route between Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States and Ratmalana, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC), Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States and Ratmalana Airport (RML), Ratmalana, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,853 miles (or 14,247 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 Ratmalana 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 Selfridge Air National Guard Base and Ratmalana 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 Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC):

• 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 May 8, 1964, disaster struck the area north of the base.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Selfridge Air National Guard Base", another name for MTC is "Selfridge ANGB".
• Beginning 27 June 1919, Selfridge became the home of the 1st Pursuit Group, currently the oldest combat group in the Air Force.
• Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Ratmalana Airport (RML):

• Ratmalana Airport (RML) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 1964, the government decided to build the new Bandaranaike International Airport north of the city, to replace Ratmalana.
• Because of Ratmalana Airport's relatively low elevation of 16 feet, planes can take off or land at Ratmalana 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ratmalana Airport", another name for RML is "රත්මලාන ගුවන්තොටුපළஇரத்மலானை விமான நிலைய".
• The furthest airport from Ratmalana Airport (RML) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,628 miles (18,713 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• In the 1950s, BOAC flew Canadair Argonauts from Ratmalana to London.
• The closest airport to Ratmalana Airport (RML) is Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) N of RML.
• In 2012, plans were drawn to relaunch Ratmalana as an international airport, to act as a secondary airport for the city.