Nonstop flight route between Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Dakhla, Western Sahara:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from PIK to VIL:
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- About this route
- PIK Airport Information
- VIL Airport Information
- Facts about PIK
- Facts about VIL
- Map of Nearest Airports to PIK
- List of Nearest Airports to PIK
- Map of Furthest Airports from PIK
- List of Furthest Airports from PIK
- Map of Nearest Airports to VIL
- List of Nearest Airports to VIL
- Map of Furthest Airports from VIL
- List of Furthest Airports from VIL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK), Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Dakhla Airport (VIL), Dakhla, Western Sahara would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,271 miles (or 3,656 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 relatively short distance between Glasgow-Prestwick Airport and Dakhla Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | PIK / EGPK |
| Airport Name: | Glasgow-Prestwick Airport |
| Location: | Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom |
| GPS Coordinates: | 55°30'33"N by 4°35'39"W |
| Area Served: | Glasgow, Prestwick, Strathclyde, Scotland |
| Operator/Owner: | Scottish Government |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 65 feet (20 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from PIK |
| More Information: | PIK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | VIL / GMMH |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Dakhla, Western Sahara |
| GPS Coordinates: | 23°43'5"N by 15°55'54"W |
| Area Served: | Dakhla |
| Operator/Owner: | Office National Des Aéroports (ONDA) / Royal Moroccan Air Force (RMAF) |
| Airport Type: | Public / Military |
| Elevation: | 36 feet (11 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from VIL |
| More Information: | VIL Maps & Info |
Facts about Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK):
- In the beginning Prestwick was the only Scottish airport allowed to operate a transatlantic link, largely due to the benign weather conditions on the Ayrshire coast.
- 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.
- Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) has 2 runways.
- The United States Air Force operated a base in 1952 on the site of the original airport using former Royal Air Force facilities 1631st Air Base Squadron), and in 1953 on the Monkton side of the airport, both used by the USAF MATS.
- The closest airport to Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) is Glasgow International Airport (GLA), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) NNE of PIK.
- In 1991 the newly privatised British Airports Authority, BAA Limited, consolidated their portfolio of UK airports.
- Glasgow-Prestwick Airport handled 1,145,836 passengers last year.
- 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.
- 1992 marked the beginning of a renaissance for the struggling airport when purchased by "Canadian entrepreneur" Matthew Hudson in a "dramatic rescue".
- Since 2007 the airport has occasionally been used by BBC motoring TV show Top Gear as the location for various stunts and experiments.
Facts about Dakhla Airport (VIL):
- Because of Dakhla Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Dakhla 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 closest airport to Dakhla Airport (VIL) is Nouadhibou International Airport (NDB), which is located 205 miles (330 kilometers) SSW of VIL.
- The passenger terminal covers 670 square metres and is capable to handle up to 55,000 passengers per year.
- During World War II, the airport was used by the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command as a stopover for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel on the North African Cairo-Dakar transport route for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel.
- In addition to being known as "Dakhla Airport", another name for VIL is "GMMH/GSVO".
- Dakhla Airport handled 4,206 passengers last year.
- Dakhla Airport (VIL) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Dakhla Airport (VIL) is Tontouta International Airport (NOU), which is nearly antipodal to Dakhla Airport (meaning Dakhla Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tontouta International Airport), and is located 12,256 miles (19,725 kilometers) away in Noumea, New Caledonia.
