Nonstop flight route between Peoria, Illinois, United States and Valenciennes, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA), Peoria, Illinois, United States and Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,259 miles (or 6,855 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport and Valenciennes-Denain 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport and Valenciennes-Denain 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 General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA):

• Peoria International Airport covers 3,800 acres at an elevation of 661 feet above mean sea level.
• The airport is co-located with the Peoria Air National Guard Base, which is home to the 182d Airlift Wing of the Illinois Air National Guard.
• General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) has 2 runways.
• General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport handled 592,101 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) is Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) ESE of PIA.
• The furthest airport from General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,003 miles (17,707 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Airport diagram for 1956
• Because of General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport's relatively low elevation of 661 feet, planes can take off or land at General Wayne A. Downing Peoria 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.

Facts about Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):

• It is known that Denain was used by the Royal Air Force, as it was assigned ALG "B-74".
• The wartime air base is still evident with the 5500' concrete NE/SW runway remaining, complete with patched bomb craters and expansion joints allowing grass to grow between the concrete pads.
• The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.
• It was seized by the Germans in late May 1940 during the early part of the Battle of France.
• In response to the interceptor attacks, Denain was attacked by USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauder medium bombers and P-47 Thunderbolts mostly with 500-pound General-Purpose bombs.
• In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
• Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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.
• Denain Airport was cleared of German forces by Allied ground forces about 11 September 1944 during the Northern France Campaign.
• In addition, a reconnaissance unit, Aufklärungsgruppe 12 was assigned to Denain in October 1940 with Henschel Hs 126 twin-seat light observation planes.
• The furthest airport from Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.