Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,480 miles (or 12,038 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 RAF Northolt and Wake Island Airfield, 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 RAF Northolt and Wake Island Airfield. 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 RAF Northolt (NHT):

• The furthest airport from RAF Northolt (NHT) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,871 miles (19,105 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• During 1952 a total of 50,000 air movements were recorded per annum, making the airfield the busiest in Europe.
• Thirty Allied airmen including servicemen from Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, New Zealand, Poland and the United Kingdom were killed flying from RAF Northolt during the Battle of Britain, of whom ten were Polish.
• Starting in 1946 the airfield was used by civil aviation during the construction of nearby Heathrow Airport.
• In January 2012, it was reported that the future of station was under review by the Ministry of Defence as part of efforts to reduce defence spending.
• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• On 1 June 1960, an Avro Anson aircraft suffered engine failure soon after take-off from Northolt and crash-landed on top of the nearby Express Dairies plant in South Ruislip.
• In 1916, No. 43 Squadron was formed under the command of Major Sholto Douglas.
• In 1943, the station became the first to fly sorties using Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXs in German airspace in support of bomber operations.

Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):

• On 26 December 1940, implementing the Hepburn Board's recommendations, a pioneer party of 80 men and 2,000 short tons of equipment sailed for Wake Island from Oahu.
• Another airline that operated into Wake Island was Philippine Airlines with Douglas DC-8 jetliners on a daily westbound service from San Francisco and Honolulu to Manila during the early 1970s.
• Because of Wake Island Airfield's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at Wake Island Airfield 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 Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is located 11,652 miles (18,752 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
• Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.