Nonstop flight route between Opelousas, Louisiana, United States and Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between St. Landry Parish Airport (OPL), Opelousas, Louisiana, United States and Bankstown Airport (BWU), Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,801 miles (or 14,164 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 St. Landry Parish Airport and Bankstown 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 St. Landry Parish Airport and Bankstown 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 St. Landry Parish Airport (OPL):

• Because of St. Landry Parish Airport's relatively low elevation of 75 feet, planes can take off or land at St. Landry Parish 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.
• In addition to being known as "St. Landry Parish Airport", another name for OPL is "Ahart Field".
• St. Landry Parish Airport (OPL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from St. Landry Parish Airport (OPL) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,045 miles (17,775 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• The closest airport to St. Landry Parish Airport (OPL) is Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) SSE of OPL.

Facts about Bankstown Airport (BWU):

• In addition to being known as "Bankstown Airport", another name for BWU is "Sydney/Bankstown Airport".
• Bankstown Airport is owned by the Federal Government and leased by Bankstown Airport Limited, a subsidiary of BAC Airports Pty Limited, whose ultimate shareholders include JF Infrastructure, Colonial First State and Australian Super.
• The closest airport to Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) E of BWU.
• The furthest airport from Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is nearly antipodal to Bankstown Airport (meaning Bankstown Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Santa Maria Airport), and is located 12,135 miles (19,529 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
• On 15 September 1982, a Douglas C-47, stored in the open, was damaged when the pilot of a light aircraft committed suicide by deliberately crashing it nearby.
• Because of Bankstown Airport's relatively low elevation of 34 feet, planes can take off or land at Bankstown 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.
• In 1970 the government put forth a proposal to expand the airport's operations but this was vigorously opposed by the local community.
• During the war, several "dummy houses" were built to make Bankstown Airport and its surrounds appear as a farm, hangars were disguised as houses with fake roads to further confuse the enemy.
• Bankstown Airport was originally planned in 1929.
• Bankstown Airport (BWU) has 3 runways.