Nonstop flight route between Old Harbor, Alaska, United States and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Old Harbor Airport (OLH), Old Harbor, Alaska, United States and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,741 miles (or 7,629 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 Old Harbor Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Old Harbor Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Old Harbor Airport (OLH):

• The closest airport to Old Harbor Airport (OLH) is Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) NW of OLH.
• Old Harbor Airport (OLH) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Old Harbor Airport (OLH) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,831 miles (17,430 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• In addition to being known as "Old Harbor Airport", another name for OLH is "6R7".
• Old Harbor Airport is a state owned, public use airport located two nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Old Harbor, a city in the Kodiak Island Borough in the U.S.
• Because of Old Harbor Airport's relatively low elevation of 55 feet, planes can take off or land at Old Harbor 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.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• RAF Fairford is also the home of the Royal International Air Tattoo, an annual air display.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.