Nonstop flight route between Nice, France and Hambantota, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE), Nice, France and Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI), Hambantota, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,116 miles (or 8,233 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 Nice Côte d'Azur Airport and Mattala Rajapaksa 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 Nice Côte d'Azur Airport and Mattala Rajapaksa 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 Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE):

• In addition to being known as "Nice Côte d'Azur Airport", another name for NCE is "Aéroport Nice Côte d'Azur".
• The closest airport to Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE) is Monaco Heliport (MCM), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) ENE of NCE.
• Nice Côte d'Azur Airport handled 11,222,042 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (meaning Nice Côte d'Azur Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,253 miles (19,720 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Nice Côte d'Azur Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at Nice Côte d'Azur 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.
• Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE) has 2 runways.
• The airport is positioned 7 km west of the city centre, and is the principal port of arrival for passengers to the Côte d'Azur.
• In 2013, There were 11,554,195 passengers.

Facts about Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI):

• Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport was declared open by the President of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa, on 18 March 2013 and commenced operations with the landing of a SriLankan Airlines special Airbus A340 flight named 'City of Magam Ruhunupura' with the President on board.
• The closest airport to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Weerawila Airport (WRZ), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) ESE of HRI.
• On October 2012, the Super King 20 Test Aircraft, which belongs to the Pakistan Civil Aviation Department and features a dual engine, landed on the new runway to test the newly constructed runway and the instrumentation.
• The furthest airport from Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,719 miles (18,860 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• Because of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport's relatively low elevation of 157 feet, planes can take off or land at Mattala Rajapaksa 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.
• Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport is an international airport serving the city of Hambantota in southeast Sri Lanka.
• As announced earlier the airport was opened for flight operations on 18 March 2013.
• The air traffic control tower of height 41m has been constructed at the highest elevation of the aerodrome.
• In addition to being known as "Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport", another name for HRI is "මත්තල රාජපක්ෂ ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළமத்தல ராஜபக்ஷ பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• The Runway dimensions are 3500m * 60m with 7.5m paved shoulders either side and 260m Runway safety area on both runway ends.
• The airport is designed to facilitate for over 800 foreign passengers at peak hours and several local passengers per every 1000 km² in side the buildings.