Nonstop flight route between Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Cape Town, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK), Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), Cape Town, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,333 miles (or 10,191 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport and Cape Town 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport and Cape Town 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK):

• On 6 July 2005, Prestwick Airport became the entry point for the participants in the 31st G8 summit held in Gleneagles.
• Glasgow-Prestwick Airport handled 1,145,836 passengers last year.
• There had been proposed plans drawn up pre-war for the post war years which would have been classed as extremely ambitious, especially in the austere post-war years.
• The closest airport to Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) is Glasgow International Airport (GLA), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) NNE of PIK.
• In response, Mark Rodwell, chief executive of Prestwick Airport, told BBC Radio Scotland, that until it was proved otherwise Prestwick Airport remains the only place in the United Kingdom that Elvis Presley ever set foot.
• Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) has 2 runways.
• Scottish Aviation built a factory using the original terminal building and hangars at Prestwick, which from 1974 produced such aircraft as the Prestwick Pioneers, and later the Jetstream and Bulldog.
• The furthest airport from Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,764 miles (18,932 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Because of Glasgow-Prestwick Airport's relatively low elevation of 65 feet, planes can take off or land at Glasgow-Prestwick 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 airport began life around 1934 — primarily as a training airfield — with a hangar, offices and control tower were constructed by the end of 1935.
• On 1 April 2014, The Robert Burns World Federation told Scottish MPs at Holyrood to rename the airport to Robert Burns International Airport a petition was created to rename it as well and was discussed by the public petition committee.

Facts about Cape Town International Airport (CPT):

• Apart from completion of the 2010 expansion project, it has been proposed that a second runway for large aircraft be constructed at Cape Town International Airport.
• Arriving passengers collect luggage in the old sections of their respective terminals, before proceeding through new passageways to the new Central Terminal Building.
• Cape Town International Airport recorded 7.8 million passengers in 2008–2009, down from 8.4 million passengers the year before.
• The closest airport to Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 217 miles (349 kilometers) E of CPT.
• Cape Town International Airport is the primary airport serving the city of Cape Town, and is the second busiest airport in South Africa and third busiest in Africa.
• Because of Cape Town International Airport's relatively low elevation of 151 feet, planes can take off or land at Cape Town 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 furthest airport from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,616 miles (18,693 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
• Cape Town International Airport (CPT) has 2 runways.
• Cape Town International Airport handled 8,505,563 passengers last year.