Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Jack Brooks Regional Airport (BPT), Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,235 miles (or 8,424 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 Jack Brooks Regional 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 Jack Brooks Regional 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):

• 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.
• 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".
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Jack Brooks Regional Airport (BPT):

• Historically, Beaumont/Port Arthur was served by Eastern Airlines during the 1950s and 1960s with Martin 4-0-4, Convair 340 and Convair 440 twin prop "Silver Falcon" airliners with flights to Houston/Hobby Airport, TX as well as direct service to Baton Rouge, LA and New Orleans, LA via intermediate stops en route in Lake Charles, LA and Lafayette, LA.
• Because of Jack Brooks Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Jack Brooks Regional 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.
• The furthest airport from Jack Brooks Regional Airport (BPT) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,026 miles (17,745 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Jack Brooks Regional Airport (BPT) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Jack Brooks Regional Airport (BPT) is Beaumont Municipal Airport (BMT), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) NW of BPT.