Nonstop flight route between Phalaborwa, South Africa and Chicago, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW), Phalaborwa, South Africa and Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,773 miles (or 14,118 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 Hendrik Van Eck Airport and Chicago O'Hare 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 Hendrik Van Eck Airport and Chicago O'Hare 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 Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW):

• In addition to being known as "Hendrik Van Eck Airport", another name for PHW is "Phalaborwa Airport".
• The furthest airport from Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,944 miles (19,222 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW) is Air Force Base Hoedspruit (HDS), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) SSW of PHW.

Facts about Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD):

• The furthest airport from Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,071 miles (17,817 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• During this era international flights used Terminal 1.
• Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) has 8 runways.
• Concourses B and C are linear concourses located in separate buildings parallel to each other.
• Because of Chicago O'Hare International Airport's relatively low elevation of 668 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago O'Hare 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.
• United Airlines is the largest airline at O'Hare, carrying over 45% of all passengers passing through the airport.
• The closest airport to Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) is Chicago Executive Airport (PWK), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) N of ORD.
• The original Douglas Aircraft C-54 Skymaster transport manufacturing plant on the northeast side of the airport became a United States Air Force Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve facility after World War II.
• By the early 1950s, Chicago Midway International Airport, Chicago's primary airport since 1931, had become too crowded despite multiple expansions and could not handle the planned first generation of jets.
• Delta moved from Terminal 3 to Terminal 2 in 2009 in order to align its operations with merger partner Northwest Airlines.
• In 2013, the Chicago Department of Aviation appropriated a $19,500 two-year contract to use livestock, specifically goats, sheep, llamas, and burros, to assist with grounds maintenance.