Nonstop flight route between Port Elizabeth, South Africa and Grand Marais, Minnesota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), Port Elizabeth, South Africa and Grand Marais/Cook County Airport (GRM), Grand Marais, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,063 miles (or 14,585 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 Port Elizabeth International Airport and Grand Marais/Cook County 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 Port Elizabeth International Airport and Grand Marais/Cook County 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 Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ):

• Construction of the permanent terminal buildings, runways and an air traffic control building began in 1950.
• August 1998 - A South African Airways Boeing 747-400 landed at Port Elizabeth Airport to be officially named 'Ibayhi' the Xhosa word for Port Elizabeth.
• The closest airport to Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 79 miles (127 kilometers) ENE of PLZ.
• In preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup runway 08/26 was going to be extended from 1,980m to 3,000m with a view to accommodating International flights, although this never happened.
• Because of Port Elizabeth International Airport's relatively low elevation of 226 feet, planes can take off or land at Port Elizabeth 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.
• 1 February 2008 - King Abdullah II of Jordan's Airbus A340-200 landed at Port Elizabeth as he makes his way down the Garden Route to Cape Town on a Harley-Davidson motorbike.
• Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) has 2 runways.
• In 2013, the airport served 1,269,634 passengers.
• The furthest airport from Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,567 miles (18,615 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.

Facts about Grand Marais/Cook County Airport (GRM):

• The furthest airport from Grand Marais/Cook County Airport (GRM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,808 miles (17,393 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Grand Marais/Cook County Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located seven nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Grand Marais, a city in Cook County, Minnesota, United States.
• The closest airport to Grand Marais/Cook County Airport (GRM) is Thunder Bay International Airport (YQT), which is located 61 miles (99 kilometers) NE of GRM.
• Grand Marais/Cook County Airport (GRM) currently has only 1 runway.
• In the summer of 2009, the airport received $95,000 for the FAA to conduct an environmental impact study on a proposed expansion to the airport.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Marais/Cook County Airport", another name for GRM is "CKC".