Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Norfolk, Virginia (near Virginia Beach and Williamsburg), United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Norfolk International Airport (ORF), Norfolk, Virginia (near Virginia Beach and Williamsburg), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,709 miles (or 5,969 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 Norfolk 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 Norfolk 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):

• Much media attention focused on the airfield when the body of Diana, Princess of Wales, arrived there from Villacoublay airfield, in Paris, France, after her death in a car crash in the city on 31 August 1997.
• In December 1946, after taking off during a heavy snowstorm, a Douglas DC-3 operated by British European Airways, flying from Northolt to Glasgow, crashed onto the roof of a house 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.
• 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.
• In 1943, the station became the first to fly sorties using Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXs in German airspace in support of bomber operations.
• Northolt received its first gate guardian, a Spitfire F.Mk 22, in September 1963.
• An additional memorial to British, Polish, Australian and New Zealand aircrew killed during the Battle of Britain was unveiled in September 2010.
• 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.
• In 1916, No. 43 Squadron was formed under the command of Major Sholto Douglas.

Facts about Norfolk International Airport (ORF):

• Approximately 70 million pounds of air cargo are presently shipped in and out of Norfolk International Airport each year.
• With World War II, Norfolk Municipal Airport became a vital resource to the war effort.
• Because of Norfolk International Airport's relatively low elevation of 27 feet, planes can take off or land at Norfolk 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 1950, responsibility for the airport was turned over to the newly established Norfolk Port and Industrial Authority which could proudly call Norfolk Municipal Airport one of the finest in the nation and one of the busiest.
• The closest airport to Norfolk International Airport (ORF) is Naval Station Norfolk (NGU), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) WNW of ORF.
• Norfolk International Airport (ORF) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Norfolk International Airport (ORF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,769 miles (18,940 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Norfolk International Airport covers an area of 1,300 acres at an elevation of 27 feet above mean sea level.
• Commercial aviation began in the Norfolk area about 1926, when Norfolk citizens flew commercially for the first time on the Mitten Line, operated by Philadelphia Rapid Transit Air Service, Inc.