Nonstop flight route between Montgomery, Alabama, United States and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Maxwell Air Force Base (MXF), Montgomery, Alabama, United States and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,557 miles (or 15,381 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 Maxwell Air Force Base and Bandaranaike 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 Maxwell Air Force Base and Bandaranaike 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 Maxwell Air Force Base (MXF):

• On January 15, 1929, it was announced that the ACTS would be twice as large as originally planned.
• In addition to being known as "Maxwell Air Force Base", another name for MXF is "Maxwell AFB".
• Hill continued to argue for the attack group to be placed at Maxwell Field.
• Gunter Annex is a separate installation under the 42 ABW.
• The closest airport to Maxwell Air Force Base (MXF) is Montgomery Regional Airport (MGM), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of MXF.
• The furthest airport from Maxwell Air Force Base (MXF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,193 miles (18,013 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• On January 25, 1930, President Herbert Hoover asked Congress to re-appropriate an additional $100,000 for the main school building at Maxwell Field.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• Bandaranaike International Airport handled 7,328,798 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Ratmalana Airport (RML), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) S of CMB.
• It was named after former Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike, in 1970.
• In addition to being known as "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• The second phase of the expansion project is being carried out with Japanese assistance and is expected to be completed by 2015.
• In 1957 it closed as the British left the island, and SWRD Bandaranaike removed all the British Military airfields from Ceylon, the airfield was handed over to the Royal Ceylon Air Force and renamed Katunayake.
• In the early 1990s the position of the airport's runway was shifted northward and the old runway was made into a taxiway for departing and arriving aircraft.
• Bandaranaike International Airport is equipped with 6 double jetway gates in preparation for airlines introducing Airbus A380 service.
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,614 miles (18,691 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• On 26 July, The Criminal Investigations Department of Sri Lanka police set up a new security system at the Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake to identify criminals.
• The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park.
• Because of Bandaranaike International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bandaranaike 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.