Nonstop flight route between Phalaborwa, South Africa and Townsville, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW), Phalaborwa, South Africa and Townsville Airport (TSV), Townsville, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,175 miles (or 11,546 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 Townsville 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 Townsville 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):

• Hendrik Van Eck Airport (PHW) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Hendrik Van Eck Airport", another name for PHW is "Phalaborwa Airport".

Facts about Townsville Airport (TSV):

• In the mid-1990s domestic flights started to decrease, with some services being cut back by Qantas and Ansett.
• The airport is the Northern Australian focus city for Virgin Australia, and has developed an aerospace precinct attracting major civil and military maintenance activities.
• The Department of Defence was looking for military airfield sites in northern Australia at the time, and almost immediately Townsville Airport was planned for expansion as a Royal Australian Air Force base for three fighter squadrons.
• In addition to being known as "Townsville Airport", other names for TSV include "Garbutt Airport" and "Townsville International Airport".
• The PNG PM wants a Townsville to Port Moresby route re-established by the end of 2013.
• Townsville Airport (TSV) has 2 runways.
• Townsville Airport handled 1,644,089 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Townsville Airport (TSV) is Charters Towers Airport (CXT), which is located 63 miles (102 kilometers) SSW of TSV.
• Because of Townsville Airport's relatively low elevation of 18 feet, planes can take off or land at Townsville 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 furthest airport from Townsville Airport (TSV) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,884 miles (19,125 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• In 2008 another upgrade project was completed, with an improvement of the check-in desks of the current airlines and an extra two desks built for Virgin Australia.
• The first airport was established in the 1920s in the Thuringowa Shire south of the Ross River, in what is now the suburb of Murray.