Nonstop flight route between Nouakchott, Mauritania and Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nouakchott International Airport (NKC), Nouakchott, Mauritania and Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,169 miles (or 9,928 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 Nouakchott International Airport 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 Nouakchott International Airport 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 Nouakchott International Airport (NKC):

• The closest airport to Nouakchott International Airport (NKC) is Boutilimit Airport (OTL), which is located 92 miles (148 kilometers) ESE of NKC.
• The furthest airport from Nouakchott International Airport (NKC) is Île des Pins Airport (BMY), which is nearly antipodal to Nouakchott International Airport (meaning Nouakchott International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Île des Pins Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Waala, Belep Islands, New Caledonia.
• Nouakchott International Airport (NKC) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Nouakchott International Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Nouakchott 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.
• Nouakchott International Airport handled 209,932 passengers last year.

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.
• Weather and Testing Units
• In addition to being known as "Ladd Army Airfield", another name for FBK is "(Ladd Air Force Base)".
• 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.
• Alaska's transportation infrastructure at the time was so limited and the problem of military supply so acute, it also made sense to concentrate the bases along existing supply lines near Anchorage and Fairbanks.
• 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.
• The airplanes arrived at Ladd were stripped of all but basic instrumentation and armament.
• The major use of Ladd Field was primarily cold-weather testing of aircraft and equipment.