Nonstop flight route between New Plymouth, New Zealand and Tampa, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between New Plymouth Airport (NPL), New Plymouth, New Zealand and MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,075 miles (or 12,996 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 New Plymouth Airport and MacDill Air Force Base, 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 New Plymouth Airport and MacDill Air Force Base. 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 New Plymouth Airport (NPL):

• In line with a general improvement throughout the 1950s and 1960s, of New Zealand's infrastructure, and National Airways Corporation acquisition of Fokker F27 Friendships, New Plymouth's airport was reviewed.
• The closest airport to New Plymouth Airport (NPL) is Wanganui Airport (WAG), which is located 80 miles (129 kilometers) SE of NPL.
• New Plymouth Airport (NPL) has 3 runways.
• New Plymouth Airport handled 332,178 passengers last year.
• Because of New Plymouth Airport's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at New Plymouth 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.
• Origin Pacific Airways used to operate Jetstream J31 and Metroliner aircraft to/from Auckland and to/from Nelson 6x weekly.
• The furthest airport from New Plymouth Airport (NPL) is Badajoz Airport (BJZ), which is nearly antipodal to New Plymouth Airport (meaning New Plymouth Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Badajoz Airport), and is located 12,382 miles (19,928 kilometers) away in Badajoz, Spain.
• The airport is the 10th busiest airport in New Zealand with 32,791 aircraft movements in 2011.
• New Plymouth Airport has a control tower with services provided by Airways Corporation.

Facts about MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• With the United States entry into World War II, the primary mission of MacDill Field became the training of bombardment units under III Bomber Command.
• After the war in Europe had broken out in September 1939, fears of Nazi U-Boats attacking American shipping in the Gulf of Mexico was the concern of the War Department.
• The rapid demobilization after the war led these units to be inactivated during 1946.
• Air defense of the Tampa Bay area was the mission of the 53d Pursuit Group, established at MacDIll on 15 January 1941.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• Also located at MacDill are a division of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the Joint Communications Support Element, the Florida Air National Guard's 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron, the Navy Reserve Forces Command's Navy Operational Support Center Tampa, the US Army's 297th Military Intelligence Battalion, the Precision Measurement Equipment Laboratory, activities of the U.S.
• The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.
• Estimates of the number of crew members trained at the base during the war vary from 50,000 to 120,000, with as many as 15,000 troops were stationed at MacDill Field at one time.