Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Ogden, Utah, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Hill Air Force Base (HIF), Ogden, Utah, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,398 miles (or 8,688 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 Hill Air Force 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 Hill Air Force 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):

• The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Base aérienne 125 Istres Advanced Landing Ground 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.
• 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"

Facts about Hill Air Force Base (HIF):

• In addition to being known as "Hill Air Force Base", another name for HIF is "Hill AFB".
• On September 8, 2004, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Genesis space probe crash-landed on the nearby U.S.
• During the Korean War, Hill AFB was assigned a major share of the Air Materiel Command's logistical effort to support the combat in Korea.
• The furthest airport from Hill Air Force Base (HIF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,935 miles (17,598 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Starting in 1944, Hill Field was utilized for the long-term storage of surplus airplanes and their support equipment, including outmoded P-40 Tomahawks and P-40 Warhawks which had been removed from combat service and replaced by newer and better warplanes.
• The closest airport to Hill Air Force Base (HIF) is Ogden-Hinckley Airport (OGD), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) NNW of HIF.
• One of the survivors of the attack, Cortney Naisbitt, later trained in computers and worked at Hill Air Force Base.