Nonstop flight route between Catania, Italy and Daqing, Heilongjiang, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY), Catania, Italy and Daqing Sartu Airport (DQA), Daqing, Heilongjiang, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,211 miles (or 8,386 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 Naval Air Station Sigonella and Daqing Sartu 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 Naval Air Station Sigonella and Daqing Sartu 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 Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY):

• Because of Naval Air Station Sigonella's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station Sigonella 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.
• When NATO took military intervention to Libya in 2011, NAS Sigonella played an important role in US Operation Odyssey Dawn because of its short distance to the country.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station Sigonella", other names for NSY include "Base aerea di Sigonella" and "NAS Sigonella".
• It also serves as an Italian base for the 41º Stormo Antisom.
• Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) has 2 runways.
• One of Sigonella's first buildings was what is now the American Forces Network building.
• On the night of 10 October 1985, there were tense hours on NAS II when the Italian Carabinieri, Italian Air Force, and the US Army's Delta Force came close to firing upon one another following the interception by Navy F-14 Tomcat fighters of an Egyptian Boeing 737 airliner carrying the hijackers of the Italian cruise ship, the Achille Lauro, which had been commandeered by members of the PLO on 7 October.
• The furthest airport from Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,695 miles (18,821 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Most permanent party military personnel and families are housed in Marinai, located 2 minutes from NAS II and approximately 10–15 minutes from NAS I.
• The closest airport to Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) ENE of NSY.

Facts about Daqing Sartu Airport (DQA):

• In addition to being known as "Daqing Sartu Airport", other names for DQA include "大庆萨尔图机场" and "Dàqìng Sàěrtú Jīchǎng".
• The furthest airport from Daqing Sartu Airport (DQA) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is nearly antipodal to Daqing Sartu Airport (meaning Daqing Sartu Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Port Stanley Airport), and is located 12,059 miles (19,408 kilometers) away in Stanley, Falkland Islands, United Kingdom.
• The closest airport to Daqing Sartu Airport (DQA) is Harbin Taiping International Airport (HRB), which is located 83 miles (133 kilometers) SE of DQA.