Nonstop flight route between Nikolai, Alaska, United States and Akrotiri, Cyprus:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nikolai Airport (NIB), Nikolai, Alaska, United States and RAF Akrotiri (AKT), Akrotiri, Cyprus would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,680 miles (or 9,142 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 Nikolai Airport and RAF Akrotiri, 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 Nikolai Airport and RAF Akrotiri. 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 Nikolai Airport (NIB):

• Nikolai Airport (NIB) currently has only 1 runway.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 364 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, a decrease of 21% from the 459 enplanements in 2007.
• Because of Nikolai Airport's relatively low elevation of 441 feet, planes can take off or land at Nikolai 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 closest airport to Nikolai Airport (NIB) is McGrath Airport (MCG), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) W of NIB.
• The furthest airport from Nikolai Airport (NIB) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,431 miles (16,787 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• In addition to being known as "Nikolai Airport", other names for NIB include "FSP" and "Nikolai".

Facts about RAF Akrotiri (AKT):

• In August 1970 a detachment of "G" of the Central Intelligence Agency arrived at the airfield with U-2 aircraft to monitor the Egypt/Israel Suez Canal fighting and cease fire.
• The station hosted the main hospital for British Forces Cyprus, The Princess Mary's Hospital, located on Cape Zevgari.
• In September 1976 the US U-2 operations were turned over to the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, but the U-2 operation at RAF Akrotiri continued to be called Operating Location OH until September 1980.
• The closest airport to RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Paphos International Airport (PFO), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) WNW of AKT.
• The furthest airport from RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,556 miles (18,598 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• The U-2s of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing were used in Operation Cedar Sweep to fly surveillance over Lebanon, relaying information about Hezbollah militants to Lebanese authorities, and in Operation Highland Warrior to fly surveillance over Turkey and northern Iraq to relay information to Turkish authorities.
• In addition to being known as "RAF Akrotiri", another name for AKT is ""Aki"".
• After the Suez Crisis, the main emphasis of life on the airfield shifted to helping quell the EOKA revolt and training missions.
• Royal Air Force Akrotiri or more simply RAF Akrotiri is a large Royal Air Force station, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.