Nonstop flight route between Marathon, Florida, United States and Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Florida Keys Marathon Airport (MTH), Marathon, Florida, United States and RAF Benson (BEX), Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,475 miles (or 7,202 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 Florida Keys Marathon Airport and RAF Benson, 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 Florida Keys Marathon Airport and RAF Benson. 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 Florida Keys Marathon Airport (MTH):

• Florida Keys Marathon Airport (MTH) currently has only 1 runway.
• Marathon Airport was originally constructed by the United States Navy in the early 1940s as Outlying Field Marathon, an auxiliary airfield to Naval Air Station Key West.
• The closest airport to Florida Keys Marathon Airport (MTH) is NAS Key West (NQX), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) WSW of MTH.
• However on December 1, 2006, the TSA bowed to the effective lobbying efforts of local government, congressional and business officials when it announced that screeners would be provided at the airport no later than February 15, 2007, even if it meant using a contractor.
• Because of Florida Keys Marathon Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Florida Keys Marathon 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 Florida Keys Marathon Airport (MTH) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,560 miles (18,603 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.

Facts about RAF Benson (BEX):

• The airfield is a well-known frost hollow, often recording the coldest temperatures in the UK.
• The station is today the home to four squadrons of Support Helicopters, 28 Squadron, 78 Squadron with Merlin helicopters and 33 Squadron and 230 Squadron with Puma helicopters.
• Royal Air Force Benson or RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force station near Benson in South Oxfordshire, England.
• The closest airport to RAF Benson (BEX) is RAF High Wycombe (HYC), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) ENE of BEX.
• The furthest airport from RAF Benson (BEX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,879 miles (19,118 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The station retained a reconnaissance role for some years after the war, with Avro Lancaster, Spitfire, Mosquito, Gloster Meteor PR.Mk 10 and English Electric Canberra PR.Mk 3 aircraft.