Nonstop flight route between Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia and Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM), Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia and RAF Ascension (ASI), Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,173 miles (or 13,153 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) and RAF Ascension, 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) and RAF Ascension. 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM):

• The closest airport to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) is Sultan Thaha Airport (DJB), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NW of PLM.
• In addition to being known as "Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II)", another name for PLM is "Bandar Udara Internasional Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (SMB II)".
• It has officially become an international airport and can accommodate the wide-body aircraft as of September 27, 2005.
• Between the development undertaken is an extension of the runway along the 300 meters x 60 meters to 3,000 meters x 60 meters, construction vehicle parking area of 20,000 meters which can accommodate 1,000 vehicles as well as the construction of a three-floor passenger terminal covering 13,000 square meters which can accommodate 1,250 passengers, equipped aerobridges and cargo terminals, and other support buildings covering an area of 1900 square meters.
• At least as early as 1938, Palembang was served by a civil airport at Talang Betutu, operating as a Customs Aerodrome equipped with wireless and direction finding equipment, and basic ground facilities.
• This development means International Airport Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II can accommodate Airbus A330, Boeing 747 and other wide-body aircraft.
• Because of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II)'s relatively low elevation of 121 feet, planes can take off or land at Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) 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.
• Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) is Benito Salas Airport (NVA), which is nearly antipodal to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (meaning Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Benito Salas Airport), and is located 12,433 miles (20,009 kilometers) away in Neiva, Colombia.

Facts about RAF Ascension (ASI):

• In addition to being known as "RAF Ascension", another name for ASI is "Wideawake Airbase/Field".
• The closest airport to RAF Ascension (ASI) is Sasstown Airport (SAZ), which is located 965 miles (1,553 kilometers) NNE of ASI.
• The NASA Tracking Station at Devil's Ashpit and the Cable & Wireless Earth Station at Donkey Plain were built in the "mid-sixties" for space operations and communications, including the latter's use for transmitting "microwave borne data via the Early Bird Satellite back to the NASA facility at Andover, Maine.
• Ascension Island Auxiliary Field was being built by 181 men from Saint Helena by 1957
• The furthest airport from RAF Ascension (ASI) is Ujae Airport (UJE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Ascension (meaning RAF Ascension is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ujae Airport), and is located 12,370 miles (19,907 kilometers) away in Ujae Atoll, Marshall Islands.