Nonstop flight route between Marakei, Kiribati and Tucson, Arizona, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Marakei Airport (MZK), Marakei, Kiribati and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), Tucson, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,317 miles (or 8,556 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 Marakei Airport and Davis–Monthan Air Force 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 Marakei Airport and Davis–Monthan Air Force 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 Marakei Airport (MZK):

• The closest airport to Marakei Airport (MZK) is Abaiang Atoll Airport (ABF), which is located 23 miles (38 kilometers) SW of MZK.
• Because of Marakei Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Marakei 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 Marakei Airport (MZK) is Cape Palmas Airport (CPA), which is located 11,988 miles (19,292 kilometers) away in Cape Palmas, Liberia.

Facts about Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA):

• The closest airport to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Tucson International Airport (TUS), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SW of DMA.
• The furthest airport from Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,508 miles (18,521 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In 1953, the jet age came to Davis-Monthan when SAC units on the base converted to the new Boeing B-47 Stratojet.
• One of the wing's tenant units, the 55th Electronic Combat Group, is tasked to provide command, control and communications countermeasures in support of tactical forces with its EC-130H aircraft.
• As the location of the Air Force Materiel Command's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, Davis–Monthan Air Force Base is the sole aircraft boneyard for excess military and government aircraft.
• In 1962, the Strategic Air Command's 390th Strategic Missile Wing and its 18 Titan II ICBM sites around Tucson were activated.
• On 2 March 1949, the Lucky Lady II, a B-50A of the 43d Bombardment Wing, completed the first nonstop round-the-world flight, having covered 23,452 miles in 94 hours and 1 minute.
• With the end of the war, operations at the base came to a virtual standstill.
• In October 1981, President Ronald Reagan announced that, as part of the strategic modernization program, Titan II systems were to be retired by 1 October 1987.
• Davis-Monthan Airport became Tucson Army Air Field in 1940, as the United States prepared for World War II.