Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Springfield/Chicopee, Massachusetts, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF), Springfield/Chicopee, Massachusetts, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,325 miles (or 5,351 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 Westover Air Reserve 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 RAF Northolt and Westover Air Reserve 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 RAF Northolt (NHT):

• In 1916, No. 43 Squadron was formed under the command of Major Sholto Douglas.
• 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.
• Starting in 1946 the airfield was used by civil aviation during the construction of nearby Heathrow Airport.
• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• The overnight base of the London Air Ambulance moved to RAF Northolt from Denham Aerodrome in February 2013.
• Attention was high again in 2001 when Ronnie Biggs, the seriously ill, fugitive Great Train Robber, was flown from Brazil to the airfield to be arrested by waiting police officers.

Facts about Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF):

• In 1955 the Strategic Air Command assumed jurisdiction of Westover Air Force Base, and the MATS transport units assigned were transferred to McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey.
• With the establishment of the United States Air Force in September 1947, the name of Westover Field was changed to Westover Air Force Base on 13 January 1948.
• The closest airport to Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF) is Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport (BAF), which is located only 10 miles (15 kilometers) WSW of CEF.
• In addition to being known as "Westover Air Reserve Base", another name for CEF is "Westover ARB".
• The first organization at the base was the 10th Signal Platoon in June 1940.
• On 1 February 1946 Westover became an Air Transport Command base which meant that it was the terminus for air routes around the world.
• With the end of World War II, Westover Field was designated as a permanent United States Army Air Force installation in 1945 and was not inactivated as most of the wartime temporary training airfields were in the fall of 1945.
• On 1 June 1948 Air Transport Command was reorganized into the Military Air Transport Service, and Westover was designated as Headquarters, Atlantic Division, Military Air Transport Service.
• The original airfield at Westover consisted of three runways in the standard "A" pattern to accommodate landings in all directions based on wind direction.
• Westover Air Reserve Base is an Air Force Reserve Command installation located in the Massachusetts communities of Chicopee and Ludlow, near the city of Springfield, Massachusetts.
• The furthest airport from Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,731 miles (18,880 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Westover Field was designed to be nearly self-sufficient, with not only hangars, but barracks, warehouses, hospitals, dental clinics, dining halls, and maintenance shops were needed.