Nonstop flight route between Catania, Italy and Junction City, Kansas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY), Catania, Italy and Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base (FRI), Junction City, Kansas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,603 miles (or 9,018 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 Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall 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 Naval Air Station Sigonella and Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall 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 Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY):

• The United States Naval Air Facility, Sigonella, was established 15 June 1959.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station Sigonella", other names for NSY include "Base aerea di Sigonella" and "NAS Sigonella".
• 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.
• Among the aircraft that fly from this island base are U.S.
• 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.
• On 1 April 2004, the Defense Logistics Agency opened Defense Depot Sigonella Italy on NAS II to serve as a supply base for the Mediterranean.
• Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• In the 1980s, Naval Air Facility Sigonella was redesignated as a Naval Air Station.
• By the end of August 1959, the NAF II airfield was available for daylight flights under visual flight rules.
• 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 Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base (FRI):

• Air Force operations at Marshall ended in late 1953, and on 19 November 1953, the first three Sikorsky H-19D helicopters purchased by the Army arrived fresh from the factory to be used in training at Marshall AAF.
• The closest airport to Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base (FRI) is Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NE of FRI.
• When the United States entered World War II Marshall possessed two hangars and three unsurfaced landing strips, the biggest strip being 3,700 feet long.
• Late in 1946 the Army Cavalry School and the Cavalry Intelligence School at Fort Riley were inactivated and the Ground General School was established there.
• In addition to being known as "Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base", another name for FRI is "Marshall AAF".
• During the war the old strips had to be surfaced and lengthened to take increased traffic and heavier, faster planes.
• The furthest airport from Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base (FRI) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,654 miles (17,146 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The airdrome from which Arnold made his flights was probably the polo field at Fort Riley.