Nonstop flight route between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States and Ruislip, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States and RAF Northolt (NHT), Ruislip, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,535 miles (or 5,690 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 Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia International Airport (PHL):

• Because of Philadelphia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Philadelphia 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.
• On June 20, 1940, the airport's weather station became as the official point for Philadelphia weather observations and records by the National Weather Service.
• Philadelphia Municipal became Philadelphia International in 1945, when American Overseas Airlines began direct flights to Europe.
• The closest airport to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Philadelphia Seaplane BaseChandler Field (PSQ), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) WSW of PHL.
• Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,734 miles (18,884 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• With 460,779 aircraft movements in 2010, Philadelphia International Airport ranks 12th busiest in the world in terms of aircraft movements.
• In 2004 Southwest Airlines announced it would begin flights from PHL, challenging US Airways in some of its important East Coast and Midwest markets.

Facts about RAF Northolt (NHT):

• On 15 September 1940 during the Battle of Britain, No. 1 Squadron RCAF, No. 229 Squadron, No.
• 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.
• Much media attention focused on the airfield when the body of Diana, Princess of Wales, arrived there from Villacoublay airfield, in Paris, France, after her death in a car crash in the city on 31 August 1997.
• Thirty Allied airmen including servicemen from Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, New Zealand, Poland and the United Kingdom were killed flying from RAF Northolt during the Battle of Britain, of whom ten were Polish.
• RAF Northolt became home to Prime Minister Winston Churchill's personal aircraft, a modified Douglas C-54 Skymaster, in June 1944.
• The closest airport to RAF Northolt (NHT) is London Heathrow Airport (LHR), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSW of NHT.
• The overnight base of the London Air Ambulance moved to RAF Northolt from Denham Aerodrome in February 2013.
• During the construction of Heathrow Airport, Northolt was used for commercial civil flights, becoming the busiest airport in Europe for a time and a major base for British European Airways.
• In August 1996, a Spanish Learjet operated by Mar Aviation overshot runway 25 and collided with a van heading eastward on the A40 Western Avenue.
• Northolt received its first gate guardian, a Spitfire F.Mk 22, in September 1963.