Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Abakan, Khakassia, Russia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Abakan International Airport (ABA), Abakan, Khakassia, Russia would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,760 miles (or 6,051 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 Istres-Le Tubé Air Base and Abakan International 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 Istres-Le Tubé Air Base and Abakan International 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 Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• 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.
• 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 base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• 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.
• The main USAAF use of Istres was by the 64th Troop Carrier Group, which operated C-47 Skytrain transports from the airfield from September to November 1944.
• 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".

Facts about Abakan International Airport (ABA):

• The closest airport to Abakan International Airport (ABA) is Yemelyanovo International Airport Аэропорт Емельяново (KJA), which is located 173 miles (279 kilometers) NNE of ABA.
• The furthest airport from Abakan International Airport (ABA) is Teniente Julio Gallardo Airfield (PNT), which is located 11,750 miles (18,910 kilometers) away in Puerto Natales, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Abakan International Airport", another name for ABA is "Международный Аэропорт Абакан".
• On November 27, 1996, 8 minutes after taking off from Abakan Airport, an Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft crashed into a mountain near Minusinsk on the right bank of Yenisey river.
• Because of Abakan International Airport's relatively low elevation of 830 feet, planes can take off or land at Abakan 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.
• Abakan International Airport (ABA) currently has only 1 runway.