Nonstop flight route between Beijing, People's Republic of China and Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China and RAF Lyneham (LYE), Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,111 miles (or 8,225 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 Beijing Capital International Airport and RAF Lyneham, 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 Beijing Capital International Airport and RAF Lyneham. 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 Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK):

• Terminal 3 has 243 elevators, escalators or moving walkways.
• Terminal 2 opened on 1 November 1999, with a floor area of 336,000 m2.
• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• Beijing Capital has rapidly ascended in rankings of the world's busiest airports in the past decade.
• Due to limited capacity at Beijing Capital International Airport, a new airport in Daxing is being planned which BCIA will be only served its domestic flights.
• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Beijing Capital International Airport", other names for PEK include "北京首都国际机场" and "Běijīng Shǒudū Guójì Jīchǎng".
• The furthest airport from Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport (VDM), which is nearly antipodal to Beijing Capital International Airport (meaning Beijing Capital International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport), and is located 12,378 miles (19,920 kilometers) away in Viedma, Argentina.
• In addition to food and beverage businesses, there is a 16,200 m2 domestic retail area, a 12,600 m2 duty-free-store area and a nearly 7,200 m2 convenience-service area, which includes banks, business centres, Internet services and more.
• The closest airport to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SSW of PEK.
• Because of Beijing Capital International Airport's relatively low elevation of 116 feet, planes can take off or land at Beijing Capital 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 Lyneham (LYE):

• In 1956, with the arrival of the de Havilland Comet operated by 216 Squadron, the main runway was extended from 6,000 feet to its present length of 7,830 feet.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lyneham (LYE) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,913 miles (19,172 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF Lyneham (LYE) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) NE of LYE.
• From 1958 Lyneham became one of the 18 Stations designated as dispersal airfields for the RAF's nuclear deterrent V bomber Force.
• It was announced in July 2011 by the then-Secretary of State for Defence, Dr Liam Fox, that Lyneham would become the new site of the Defence Technical Training Change Programme centre.
• The station closed on 31 December 2012 with the majority of its personnel and other assets having moved to RAF Brize Norton.
• The decision to close RAF Lyneham was made in 2002, and it was scheduled for closure by 2012 with all functions and aircraft relocated to RAF Brize Norton.
• Because of RAF Lyneham's relatively low elevation of 512 feet, planes can take off or land at RAF Lyneham 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.
• 99 Squadron reformed on 17 November 1945, at RAF Lyneham equipped with the Avro York, it operated as part of the Berlin Airlift.
• RAF Lyneham (LYE) has 2 runways.
• 511 Squadron was formed again at RAF Lyneham on 15 December 1959, as the second squadron to operate the Bristol Britannia on long-range trooping flights.