Nonstop flight route between Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Salgado Filho International Airport (POA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,387 miles (or 10,279 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 Salgado Filho International Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Salgado Filho International Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Salgado Filho International Airport (POA):

• In 1932, needing a facility to use its aircraft with landing-gear which were replacing its seaplanes, Varig started using São João Airport as its operational base.
• One of the two TAP Maintenance & Engineering centers in Brazil is located at Salgado Filho International Airport.
• The furthest airport from Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) is Yakushima Airport (KUM), which is nearly antipodal to Salgado Filho International Airport (meaning Salgado Filho International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Yakushima Airport), and is located 12,324 miles (19,834 kilometers) away in Yakushima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.
• Because of Salgado Filho International Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Salgado Filho 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.
• Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Salgado Filho International Airport", another name for POA is "Aeroporto Internacional Salgado Filho".
• The closest airport to Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) is Diomício Freitas/Forquilhinha Airport (CCM), which is located 137 miles (221 kilometers) NE of POA.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The 422nd ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.