Nonstop flight route between Nelson, New Zealand and Rifle, Colorado, United States:
Departure Airport:
(41°17'53"S by 173°13'15"E)
Arrival Airport:
(39°31'35"N by 107°43'36"W)
Distance from NSN to RIL:
7,466.08 miles (12,015.46 km)
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Jump to:
- About this route
- NSN Airport Information
- RIL Airport Information
- Facts about NSN
- Facts about RIL
- Map of Nearest Airports to NSN
- List of Nearest Airports to NSN
- Map of Furthest Airports from NSN
- List of Furthest Airports from NSN
- Map of Nearest Airports to RIL
- List of Nearest Airports to RIL
- Map of Furthest Airports from RIL
- List of Furthest Airports from RIL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN), Nelson, New Zealand and Garfield County Regional Airport (RIL), Rifle, Colorado, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,466 miles (or 12,015 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 Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū and Garfield County Regional 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 Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū and Garfield County Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | NSN / NZNS |
| Airport Name: | Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū |
| Location: | Nelson, New Zealand |
| GPS Coordinates: | 41°17'53"S by 173°13'15"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Nelson Airport Limited |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 17 feet (5 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 4 |
| View all routes: | Routes from NSN |
| More Information: | NSN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | RIL / KRIL |
| Airport Name: | Garfield County Regional Airport |
| Location: | Rifle, Colorado, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 39°31'35"N by 107°43'36"W |
| Area Served: | Garfield County, Colorado |
| Operator/Owner: | Garfield County |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5548 feet (1,691 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from RIL |
| More Information: | RIL Maps & Info |
Facts about Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN):
- Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) has 4 runways.
- Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū handled 776,448 passengers last year.
- The furthest airport from Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) is Bragança Airport (BGC), which is nearly antipodal to Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (meaning Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Bragança Airport), and is located 12,398 miles (19,953 kilometers) away in Bragança, Portugal.
- Nelson airport is the home base of Air Nelson operating under the Air NZ Link banner, which operates a fleet of Bombardier Dash 8 Q300s on national air routes.
- Sounds Air offer a number of scenic and charter flight services out of Nelson.
- Because of Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū 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 airport has a single terminal building with 9 tarmac gates.
- The closest airport to Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) is Motueka Aerodrome (MZP), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NW of NSN.
Facts about Garfield County Regional Airport (RIL):
- Because of Garfield County Regional Airport's high elevation of 5,548 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at RIL. Combined with a high temperature, this could make RIL a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The closest airport to Garfield County Regional Airport (RIL) is Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) E of RIL.
- The furthest airport from Garfield County Regional Airport (RIL) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,972 miles (17,657 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Garfield County Regional Airport (RIL) currently has only 1 runway.
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 16.91 miles (27.21 km) NW | Motueka Aerodrome (MZP) | Motueka, New Zealand |     |
| 2 | 34.81 miles (56.03 km) NW | Takaka Aerodrome (KTF) | Takaka, New Zealand | |
| 3 | 36.92 miles (59.41 km) ESE | Woodbourne Airport (BHE) | Blenheim, New Zealand | |
| 4 | 80.28 miles (129.19 km) SSE | Kaikoura Aerodrome (KBZ) | Kaikoura, New Zealand | |
| 5 | 82.24 miles (132.35 km) E | Wellington International Airport (WLG) | Wellington, New Zealand | |
| 6 | 90.13 miles (145.05 km) WSW | Westport Airport (WSZ) | Westport, New Zealand | |
| 7 | 95.99 miles (154.47 km) ENE | Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) | Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand | |
| 8 | 127.49 miles (205.18 km) E | Hood Aerodrome (MRO) | Masterton, New Zealand | |
| 9 | 131.82 miles (212.14 km) SW | Greymouth Airport (GMN) | Greymouth, New Zealand | |
| 10 | 132.18 miles (212.72 km) NE | Wanganui Airport (WAG) | Wanganui, New Zealand | |
| 11 | 142.34 miles (229.07 km) ENE | Palmerston North Airport (PMR) | Palmerston North, New Zealand | |
| 12 | 150.78 miles (242.66 km) SW | Hokitika Airport (HKK) | Hokitika, New Zealand | |
| 13 | 155.42 miles (250.12 km) SSW | Christchurch International Airport (CHC) | Christchurch, New Zealand | |
| 14 | 166.09 miles (267.30 km) NNE | New Plymouth Airport (NPL) | New Plymouth, New Zealand | |
| 15 | 194.01 miles (312.23 km) SSW | Ashburton Aerodrome (ASG) | Ashburton, New Zealand | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 12,398.04 miles (19,952.67 km) N | Bragança Airport (BGC) | Bragança, Portugal | |
| 2 | 12,387.93 miles (19,936.40 km) E | Vila Real Airport (VRL) | Vila Real, Portugal | |
| 3 | 12,366.16 miles (19,901.36 km) WNW | Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM) | Salamanca, Spain | |
| 4 | 12,356.51 miles (19,885.83 km) NNE | Covilhã Airport (COV) | Covilhã, Portugal | |
| 5 | 12,348.23 miles (19,872.50 km) ENE | Braga Airport (BGZ) | Braga, Portugal | |
| 6 | 12,338.07 miles (19,856.16 km) E | Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport (OPO) | Porto, Portugal | |
| 7 | 12,333.18 miles (19,848.29 km) WNW | Valladolid International Airport (VLL) | Valladolid, Spain | |
| 8 | 12,330.58 miles (19,844.09 km) NNW | León Airport (LEN) | León, Spain | |
| 9 | 12,321.86 miles (19,830.05 km) NE | Vigo Airport (VGO) | Vigo, Galicia, Spain | |
| 10 | 12,318.19 miles (19,824.16 km) NE | Coimbra Airport (CBP) | Coimbra, Portugal | |
| 11 | 12,298.13 miles (19,791.88 km) NE | Santiago de Compostela Airport (SCQ) | Santiago de Compostela, Spain | |
| 12 | 12,276.07 miles (19,756.37 km) NNE | A Coruña Airport (LCG) | A Coruña, Spain | |
| 13 | 12,275.75 miles (19,755.85 km) NNW | Asturias Airport (OVD) | Oviedo, Asturias, Spain | |
| 14 | 12,270.48 miles (19,747.37 km) N | Badajoz Airport (BJZ) | Badajoz, Spain | |
| 15 | 12,259.29 miles (19,729.36 km) WNW | Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport[1] (MAD) | Madrid, Spain | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 43.83 miles (70.53 km) E | Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) | Eagle, Colorado (near Vail), United States | |
| 2 | 50.39 miles (81.10 km) ESE | Aspen–Pitkin County Airport (ASE) | Aspen, Colorado, United States | |
| 3 | 51.05 miles (82.15 km) WSW | Grand Junction Regional Airport (GJT) | Grand Junction, Colorado, United States | |
| 4 | 67.82 miles (109.14 km) N | Craig–Moffat Airport (CIG) | Craig, Colorado, United States | |
| 5 | 70.81 miles (113.96 km) S | Montrose Regional Airport (MTJ) | Montrose, Colorado, United States | |
| 6 | 71.26 miles (114.68 km) NNE | Yampa Valley Airport (HDN) | Hayden, Colorado, United States | |
| 7 | 78.24 miles (125.91 km) ESE | Lake County Airport (LXV) | Leadville, Colorado, United States | |
| 8 | 80.73 miles (129.93 km) SSE | Gunnison-Crested Butte Regional Airport (GUC) | Gunnison, Colorado, United States | |
| 9 | 82.15 miles (132.21 km) NNE | Steamboat Springs Airport (SBS) | Steamboat Springs, Colorado, United States | |
| 10 | 109.09 miles (175.56 km) S | Telluride Regional Airport (TEX) | Telluride, Colorado, United States | |
| 11 | 113.02 miles (181.89 km) SE | Harriet Alexander Field (SLT) | Salida, Colorado, United States | |
| 12 | 113.59 miles (182.80 km) NW | Vernal Regional Airport (VEL) | Vernal, Utah, United States | |
| 13 | 121.03 miles (194.78 km) WSW | Canyonlands Field (CNY) | Moab, Utah, United States | |
| 14 | 137.44 miles (221.19 km) ENE | Boulder Municipal Airport (WBU) | Boulder, Colorado, United States | |
| 15 | 140.34 miles (225.86 km) SW | Monticello Airport (MXC) | Monticello, Utah, United States | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 10,971.76 miles (17,657.30 km) SSE | Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG) | Rodrigues Island, Mauritius | |
| 2 | 10,859.41 miles (17,476.48 km) SE | Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (MRU) | Plaisance, Mauritius | |
| 3 | 10,833.54 miles (17,434.85 km) SE | Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE) | Saint-Pierre, Réunion | |
| 4 | 10,812.17 miles (17,400.46 km) SE | Roland Garros Airport (RUN) | St Denis, Réunion, France | |
| 5 | 10,661.10 miles (17,157.34 km) ESE | Tôlanaro Airport (FTU) | Tôlanaro, Madagascar | |
| 6 | 10,541.39 miles (16,964.68 km) SE | Mananjary Airport (MNJ) | Mananjary, Madagascar | |
| 7 | 10,539.21 miles (16,961.18 km) ESE | Ampanihy Airport (AMP) | Ampanihy, Madagascar | |
| 8 | 10,498.21 miles (16,895.18 km) ESE | Fianarantsoa Airport (WFI) | Fianarantsoa, Madagascar | |
| 9 | 10,422.05 miles (16,772.63 km) SE | Toamasino Airport (TMM) | Toamasina, Madagascar | |
| 10 | 10,383.04 miles (16,709.83 km) SE | Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) | Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar | |
| 11 | 10,379.31 miles (16,703.84 km) SE | Ivato International Airport (TNR) | Antananarivo, Madagascar | |
| 12 | 10,369.09 miles (16,687.39 km) ESE | Manja Airport (MJA) | Manja, Menabe, Madagascar | |
| 13 | 10,352.33 miles (16,660.42 km) ESE | Andavadoaka Airport (DVD) | Andavadoaka, Toliara province, Atsimo-Andrefana region, Madagascar | |
| 14 | 10,340.75 miles (16,641.77 km) ESE | Morombe Airport (MXM) | Morombe, Madagascar | |
| 15 | 10,330.11 miles (16,624.65 km) ESE | Miandrivazo Airport (ZVA) | Miandrivazo, Madagascar | |