Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Drayton Valley, Alberta, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Drayton Valley Industrial Airport (YDC), Drayton Valley, Alberta, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,267 miles (or 6,867 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 Drayton Valley Industrial 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 Drayton Valley Industrial 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):

• Following Louis Blériot's first flight across the English Channel in 1909, the British Army considered the necessity of defending the United Kingdom from a future air attack.
• 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 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.
• In 1943, the station became the first to fly sorties using Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXs in German airspace in support of bomber operations.
• During the construction of Heathrow Airport, Northolt was used for commercial civil flights, becoming the busiest airport in Europe for a time and a major base for British European Airways.
• In 1916, No. 43 Squadron was formed under the command of Major Sholto Douglas.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Drayton Valley Industrial Airport (YDC):

• Drayton Valley Industrial Airport (YDC) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Drayton Valley Industrial Airport (YDC) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,273 miles (16,533 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The closest airport to Drayton Valley Industrial Airport (YDC) is Edmonton International Airport (YEG), which is located 57 miles (92 kilometers) E of YDC.
• In addition to being known as "Drayton Valley Industrial Airport", another name for YDC is "CER3".