Nonstop flight route between Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States and East London, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX), Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, United States and East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,271 miles (or 13,311 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 NAS JRB Willow Grove and East London 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 NAS JRB Willow Grove and East London 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 NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX):

• The airfield shut down on March 31, 2011.
• Because of NAS JRB Willow Grove's relatively low elevation of 335 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS JRB Willow Grove 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.
• On September 30, 2007, pursuant to direction of BRAC 2005, the Air Force Reserve Command disestablished the 913th Airlift Wing at the collocated Willow Grove ARS, redistributing its C-130 Hercules aircraft to other active duty Air Force and Air Force Reserve units.
• Flight activity began here in 1926 when Harold Frederick Pitcairn constructed a hangar and a grass airstrip in Horsham, Pennsylvania.
• On February 29, 2008, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania released a report detailing a plan for a joint interagency installation, with a mission of national defense, homeland security and emergency preparedness.
• NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,726 miles (18,871 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX) is Wings Field (BBX), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) SW of NXX.

Facts about East London Airport (ELS):

• East London's airport is a small but bustling one that plays an important role in the growing economy of the Eastern Cape.
• East London Airport resides at an elevation of 435 feet above mean sea level.
• East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from East London Airport (ELS) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,569 miles (18,618 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.
• In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
• The closest airport to East London Airport (ELS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of ELS.
• Because of East London Airport's relatively low elevation of 436 feet, planes can take off or land at East London 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.