Nonstop flight route between Norfolk, Virginia (near Virginia Beach and Williamsburg), United States and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Norfolk International Airport (ORF), Norfolk, Virginia (near Virginia Beach and Williamsburg), United States and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,650 miles (or 5,874 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 Norfolk International 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 Norfolk International 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 Norfolk International Airport (ORF):

• NIA houses one of the most modern and efficient air cargo facilities in the state of Virginia.
• With World War II, Norfolk Municipal Airport became a vital resource to the war effort.
• The crosswind runway's was closed for renovations on December 19, 2009 and reopened in Spring 2011.
• Norfolk International Airport is a public use airport located three nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Norfolk, an independent city in the U.S.
• Norfolk International Airport (ORF) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Norfolk International Airport (ORF) is Naval Station Norfolk (NGU), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) WNW of ORF.
• In the 1960s, the transition from propeller driven aircraft to jets gathered full steam.
• The furthest airport from Norfolk International Airport (ORF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,769 miles (18,940 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Norfolk International Airport's relatively low elevation of 27 feet, planes can take off or land at Norfolk International 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):

• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 14 January 2004, the 420th Air Base Group was established at RAF Fairford to improve the control of its geographically separated units that had been aligned beneath the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall.
• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• 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.
• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.