Nonstop flight route between Port Hedland, Western Australia, Australia and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Port Hedland International Airport (PHE), Port Hedland, Western Australia, Australia and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,248 miles (or 5,227 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 Port Hedland International Airport and Bandaranaike International 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 Port Hedland International Airport and Bandaranaike International 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 Port Hedland International Airport (PHE):

• Port Hedland International Airport handled 367,690 passengers last year.
• *Port Hedland-Perth route data only included from August 2009
• The furthest airport from Port Hedland International Airport (PHE) is Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport (AXA), which is nearly antipodal to Port Hedland International Airport (meaning Port Hedland International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport), and is located 12,251 miles (19,716 kilometers) away in The Valley, Anguilla.
• Because of Port Hedland International Airport's relatively low elevation of 33 feet, planes can take off or land at Port Hedland 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.
• The closest airport to Port Hedland International Airport (PHE) is Coolawanyah Station Airport (COY), which is located 113 miles (181 kilometers) SSW of PHE.
• Port Hedland International Airport (PHE) has 2 runways.
• Port Hedland International Airport was ranked 21st in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in financial year 2010-2011.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• The closest airport to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Ratmalana Airport (RML), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) S of CMB.
• Terminal 1 opened in 1967 and is the oldest, but biggest terminal in the airport.
• Bandaranaike International Airport handled 7,328,798 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,614 miles (18,691 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park.
• On 7 November 1971 the first Boeing 747 landing took place, the Boeing 747-200B was operated by Condor was carrying German tourists from Frankfurt.
• The airport began as a Royal Air Force airfield in 1944 during the Second World War, RAF Station Negombo
• Bandaranaike International Airport is equipped with 6 double jetway gates in preparation for airlines introducing Airbus A380 service.
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• Because of Bandaranaike International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bandaranaike 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.