Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,414 miles (or 8,713 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 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 RAF Northolt 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 RAF Northolt (NHT):

• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of 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.
• The outbreak of the First World War necessitated a new aerodrome for the Royal Flying Corps.
• In 1943, the station became the first to fly sorties using Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXs in German airspace in support of bomber operations.
• RAF Northolt became home to Prime Minister Winston Churchill's personal aircraft, a modified Douglas C-54 Skymaster, in June 1944.
• The remains of a Hawker Hurricane flown by Flying Officer Ludwik Witold Paszkiewicz, the first pilot in No. 303 Squadron to shoot down an enemy aircraft, were donated to the station in June 2008.
• During 1952 a total of 50,000 air movements were recorded per annum, making the airfield the busiest in Europe.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• 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.
• The second phase of the expansion project is being carried out with Japanese assistance and is expected to be completed by 2015.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.