Nonstop flight route between Fort Rucker/Ozark, Alabama, United States and Fritzlar, Hessen, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) (OZR), Fort Rucker/Ozark, Alabama, United States and Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ), Fritzlar, Hessen, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,772 miles (or 7,679 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 Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) and Fritzlar Air 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 Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) and Fritzlar Air 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 Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) (OZR):

• The Aviation Training Brigade consists of five battalions that conduct flight training at Fort Rucker at three training sites.
• Because of Cairns Army Airfield (AAF)'s relatively low elevation of 301 feet, planes can take off or land at Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) 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.
• The closest airport to Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) (OZR) is Lowe Army Heliport (AHP) (LOR), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NNW of OZR.
• Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) (OZR) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Cairns Army Airfield (AAF)", other names for OZR include "Cairns Army Airfield" and "Fort Rucker".
• Needing a location to shoot all takeoffs and landings for the 1949 film Twelve O'Clock High, including the spectacular B-17 Flying Fortress belly-landing sequence early in the film, director Henry King selected Ozark since its dark runways more closely matched wartime bases in England as opposed to the light-colored runways at nearby Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, the primary shoot location.
• The furthest airport from Cairns Army Airfield (AAF) (OZR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,214 miles (18,047 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ):

• The closest airport to Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) is Kassel Calden Airport (KSF), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) NNE of FRZ.
• The barely damaged Luftwaffe airfield were captured by parts of the 9th Infantry Division on 30 March 1945.
• Because of Fritzlar Air Base's relatively low elevation of 566 feet, planes can take off or land at Fritzlar Air Base 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.
• Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) currently has only 1 runway.
• In March 1945 a training squadron of Nachtjagdgeschwader 101 was based in Fritzlar.
• The furthest airport from Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,865 miles (19,096 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Air force operations were phased out on 14 September 1947, and the air base was turned over to the United States Army.
• In addition to being known as "Fritzlar Air Base", another name for FRZ is "Heeresflugplatz FritzlarAdvanced Landing Ground Y-86".
• During the Berlin Blockade in 1948/49, Fritzlar Air Base served as radio beacon and emergency airfield on route back to Frankfurt and Wiesbaden.