Nonstop flight route between Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW), Guantanamo Bay, Cuba would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,130 miles (or 13,084 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 Kapiti Coast Airport and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, 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 Kapiti Coast Airport and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay. 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 Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ):

• Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) has 3 runways.
• Because of Kapiti Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at Kapiti Coast 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.
• On 6 November 1970, Douglas C-47B ZK-AXS of the Ministry of Transport was damaged beyond economic repair during a downwind simulated takeoff, when the undercarriage collapsed.
• As recently as 1992, alternate sites for a new airport for Wellington were investigated, including Paraparaumu, but a decision was made to upgrade Wellington Airport's existing site.
• The furthest airport from Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Kapiti Coast Airport (meaning Kapiti Coast Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,411 miles (19,973 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
• New Zealand's Civil Aviation Authority has recently approved the airport after identifying approach obstruction issues.
• Interest in providing commercial flights at Paraparaumu reignited because the Kapiti coast is one of New Zealand's fastest growing regional centres.
• The closest airport to Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Wellington International Airport (WLG), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) SSW of PPQ.
• Re-development proposals involve closing 11/29, with a parallel grass runway as the only crosswind runway.

Facts about United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW):

• In 2005, the Navy completed a $12 million wind project erecting four wind turbines capable of supplying about a quarter of the base's peak power needs, reducing diesel fuel usage and pollution from the existing diesel generators, while saving $1.2 million in annual energy costs.
• The closest airport to United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW) is Mariana Grajales Airport (GAO), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) N of NBW.
• Until the 1953–59 revolution, thousands of Cubans commuted daily from outside the base to jobs within.
• The furthest airport from United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW) is RAAF Learmonth (LEA), which is located 11,820 miles (19,022 kilometers) away in Exmouth, Western Australia, Australia.
• In the last quarter of the 20th century, the base was used to house Cuban and Haitian refugees intercepted on the high seas.