Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Hachinohe, Honshū, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE), Hachinohe, Honshū, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,029 miles (or 9,702 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 JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base, 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 JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base. 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):

• 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.
• 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".
• 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.
• Mirage 2000 "escadron Limousin"
• 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 base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE):

• With the start of the Korean War in 1950, the base was turned over to the Japanese National Police Reserve, the immediate predecessor to the Japan Defense Agency.
• In 1963, American authorities banned civilian air traffic to Misawa Air Base, citing safety and security reasons, and commercial air operations were transferred to Hachinohe.
• The closest airport to JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE) is Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) NNW of HHE.
• The furthest airport from JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,480 miles (18,476 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE) currently has only 1 runway.
• JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base is currently the headquarters of the JMSDF Fleet Air Wing 2, which is equipped with Kawasaki-Lockheed P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft, and which is responsible for patrols of the seaward approaches to northern Japan.
• In addition to being known as "JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base", other names for HHE include "八戸航空基地" and "Hachinohe Koku-kichi".
• Because of JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base's relatively low elevation of 152 feet, planes can take off or land at JMSDF Hachinohe 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.