Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Boston, Massachusetts, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Boston, Massachusetts, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,700 miles (or 5,954 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 Boston Logan 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 Boston Logan 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):

• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• Sometime after World War II, until May 1958 Base Aérienne 125 was host to the Royal Air Force Liaison Party, that serviced transient British and Commonwealth military aircraft staging to and from the United Kingdom.
• 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".
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• 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.

Facts about Boston Logan International Airport (BOS):

• The closest airport to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) is Norwood Memorial Airport (OWD), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) SW of BOS.
• Until around 1950 the airline terminal was at 42.367N 71.0275W.
• Boston Logan International Airport handled 3,021,863 passengers last year.
• Because of Boston Logan International Airport's relatively low elevation of 20 feet, planes can take off or land at Boston Logan 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.
• When Terminal E opened in 1974 it was the second largest international arrivals facility in the United States.
• In April 2007 the FAA approved construction of a center field taxiway long-sought by Massport.
• Qatar Airways has announced that they will begin service to Boston once they begin receiving 787s in 2013.
• Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) has 6 runways.
• The furthest airport from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,767 miles (18,937 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.