Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Dien Bien Phu, Vietnam:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Dien Bien Phu Airport (DIN), Dien Bien Phu, Vietnam would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,596 miles (or 9,006 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 Dien Bien Phu 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 Dien Bien Phu 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"
• The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Dien Bien Phu Airport (DIN):

• In addition to being known as "Dien Bien Phu Airport", another name for DIN is "Sân bay Điện Biên Phủ".
• The closest airport to Dien Bien Phu Airport (DIN) is Oudomsay Airport (ODY), which is located 82 miles (132 kilometers) SW of DIN.
• The furthest airport from Dien Bien Phu Airport (DIN) is Carolina Airport (CLN), which is located 11,998 miles (19,308 kilometers) away in Carolina, Maranhão, Brazil.
• Dien Bien Phu Airport (DIN) currently has only 1 runway.