Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Columbus, New Mexico, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS), Columbus, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,716 miles (or 9,198 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 Columbus Municipal 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 Columbus Municipal 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):

• Mirage 2000 "escadron Limousin"
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• 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".
• 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.
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS):

• President Woodrow Wilson immediately asked President Carranza of Mexico for permission to send United States troops into his country, and Carranza reluctantly gave permission "for the sole purpose of capturing the bandit Villa." Wilson then ordered General John J.
• Pershing crossed the border with 6,600 men a week after the Columbus raid.
• The furthest airport from Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,433 miles (18,400 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The airport's operations ceased abruptly with the arrest of the notorious "Columbus Air Force" drug-running gang by the DEA in the late 1970s.
• Because of Columbus Municipal Airport's high elevation of 4,024 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at CUS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make CUS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Today, efforts are being made to restore part of the airport and re-establish it as an active facility for general aviation.
• Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) currently has only 1 runway.
• The fliers arrived on 20 April 1916, and found four new Curtiss N-8s, an export version of the JN-4, the latest model of the Jenny.
• After World War I, Columbus Airfield was used by the Army as part of their patrol flights along the Mexican border.
• In addition to being known as "Columbus Municipal Airport", other names for CUS include "Historical Airport", "Modern Airfield" and "0NM0".
• The closest airport to Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) is Deming Municipal AirportDeming Army Airfield (DMN), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) N of CUS.