Nonstop flight route between Pottstown, Pennsylvania, United States and Istres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Heritage Field (PTW), Pottstown, Pennsylvania, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,978 miles (or 6,402 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 Heritage Field and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Heritage Field and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. 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 Heritage Field (PTW):

• Heritage Field covers an area of 220 acres at an elevation of 309 feet above mean sea level.
• Previously known as Pottstown Limerick Airport, the airport was sold in 2009 by its former owner, the Exelon Generation Company, which also owns the nearby Limerick Nuclear Power Plant.
• Heritage Field (PTW) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Heritage Field (PTW) is Quakertown Airport (UKT), which is located only 16 miles (27 kilometers) NE of PTW.
• The furthest airport from Heritage Field (PTW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,706 miles (18,839 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Heritage Field's relatively low elevation of 309 feet, planes can take off or land at Heritage Field 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.
• Heritage Field is a public use airport in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States.

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• With the end of the war, the Americans used Istres as a staging point between Occupied Germany and Morocco for air transport of personnel back to the United States.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 31 March 1992, a Boeing 707 of Kabo Air, a Nigerian company, made an emergency landing at Istres after engines 3 and 4 had separated from the wing in turbulence at 35,000 feet.
• Mirage 2000 "escadron Limousin"
• Base aérienne 125 Istres Advanced Landing Ground Y-17
• Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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.
• In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
• The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
• Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.