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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China and RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,061 miles (or 8,145 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 Northolt, 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 Northolt. 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):

• Construction of Terminal 3 started on 28 March 2004, and the terminal opened in two stages.
• An indoor garden is constructed in the T3E waiting area, in the style of imperial gardens such as the Summer Palace.
• The closest airport to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SSW of PEK.
• 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.
• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• 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 luggage system can handle 19,200 pieces of luggage per hour.
• 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.
• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• Another expansion, Terminal 3 was completed in February 2008, in time for the Beijing Olympics.

Facts about RAF Northolt (NHT):

• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• During 1952 a total of 50,000 air movements were recorded per annum, making the airfield the busiest in Europe.
• RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force station in South Ruislip, 2 nautical miles from Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, west London.
• The furthest airport from RAF Northolt (NHT) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,871 miles (19,105 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Since 1 June 1998, station commanders have served as aides-de-camp to Her Majesty the Queen.
• Northolt became an active base during the Second World War for Royal Air Force and Polish Air Force squadrons in their defence of the United Kingdom.
• After the Battle of Britain, the station remained a base for daytime fighter operations, with No.
• On 15 September 1940 during the Battle of Britain, No. 1 Squadron RCAF, No. 229 Squadron, No.
• Following Louis Blériot's first flight across the English Channel in 1909, the British Army considered the necessity of defending the United Kingdom from a future air attack.