Nonstop flight route between Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom and Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport (ZIH), Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,729 miles (or 9,220 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 Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo 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 Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo 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):

• An additional memorial to British, Polish, Australian and New Zealand aircrew killed during the Battle of Britain was unveiled in September 2010.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• Northolt pre-dates the establishment of the Royal Air Force by almost three years, having opened in May 1915.

Facts about Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport (ZIH):

• Because of Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo 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.
• The furthest airport from Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport (ZIH) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,433 miles (18,399 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport (ZIH) is Lázaro Cárdenas Airport (LZC), which is located 57 miles (92 kilometers) WNW of ZIH.
• In addition to being known as "Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport", another name for ZIH is "Aeropuerto Internacional de Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo".
• Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo International Airport (ZIH) currently has only 1 runway.