Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Sidi Bel Abbès, Algeria:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW), Sidi Bel Abbès, Algeria would travel a Great Circle distance of 648 miles (or 1,043 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 relatively short distance between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base and Sidi Bel Abbès Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

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

• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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".
• 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.
• 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 airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• Built prior to World War II, Istres Air Base was first used by the Armée de l'air during the early part of the war, and after the 1940 Battle of France and the June Armistice with Nazi Germany, became part of the limited air force of the Vichy Government.
• 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.

Facts about Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW):

• The furthest airport from Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) is Great Barrier Aerodrome (GBZ), which is nearly antipodal to Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (meaning Sidi Bel Abbès Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Great Barrier Aerodrome), and is located 12,204 miles (19,641 kilometers) away in Great Barrier Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) is Oran Tafaraoui Airport (TAF), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) N of BFW.
• Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) currently has only 1 runway.