Nonstop flight route between Palmer, Alaska, United States and Mackay, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Palmer Municipal Airport (PAQ), Palmer, Alaska, United States and Mackay Airport (MKY), Mackay, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,645 miles (or 10,694 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 Palmer Municipal Airport and Mackay 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 Palmer Municipal Airport and Mackay 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 Palmer Municipal Airport (PAQ):

• Palmer Municipal Airport (PAQ) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Palmer Municipal Airport (PAQ) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,515 miles (16,922 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Because of Palmer Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 242 feet, planes can take off or land at Palmer Municipal 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.
• The closest airport to Palmer Municipal Airport (PAQ) is Wasilla Airport (WWA), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) W of PAQ.

Facts about Mackay Airport (MKY):

• Moves to establish an airport at Mackay began in 1927, when Captain Ron Adair selected the site of the town commons for the construction of an aerodrome, and landed the first plane in Mackay there, his own Avro biplane.
• In November 2008, Mackay Airport was sold to a private consortium to fund the development of Mackay Hospital.
• The furthest airport from Mackay Airport (MKY) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,973 miles (19,269 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• Mackay Airport handled 1,049,172 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Mackay Airport (MKY) is Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NNW of MKY.
• Mackay Airport (MKY) has 2 runways.
• In January 2010, Auckland International Airport Limited, announced plans to purchase almost 25 per cent of North Queensland Airports, operator of the airports at Cairns and Mackay, for about $167 million.
• Because of Mackay Airport's relatively low elevation of 19 feet, planes can take off or land at Mackay 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.
• Despite the collapse of airlines Ansett Australia and Flight West Airlines in 2001, Mackay Airport has experienced considerable growth in recent years, due to the use of the airport by Virgin Australia and the expansion of QantasLink services, and handles over 620,000 passengers through the terminal per annum but that has slowed and the airport is up for sale.