Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,206 miles (or 6,769 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 Ladd Army 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 Ladd Army 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):

• Construction of the new aerodrome, to be named "RFC Military School, Ruislip", began in January 1915.
• 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.
• The outbreak of the First World War necessitated a new aerodrome for the Royal Flying Corps.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• Four Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft arrived at the station from RAF Coningsby on 2 May 2012 to take part in a security exercise as part of preparations for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
• 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.
• After the Battle of Britain, the station remained a base for daytime fighter operations, with No.

Facts about Ladd Army Airfield (FBK):

• The closest airport to Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of FBK.
• Ferrying and Transport Units
• Ladd was not exclusively an Air Force site.
• Because of Ladd Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 454 feet, planes can take off or land at Ladd Army 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.
• Weather and Testing Units
• In addition to being known as "Ladd Army Airfield", another name for FBK is "(Ladd Air Force Base)".
• The major use of Ladd Field was primarily cold-weather testing of aircraft and equipment.
• Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,286 miles (16,554 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• When the Air Force was made a separate branch in 1947 the name was changed to Ladd Air Force Base.