Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF), Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 618 miles (or 995 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 relatively short distance between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base and Hatfield Aerodrome, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF):

• A hard runway was laid in 1947.
• The furthest airport from Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,860 miles (19,086 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF) is London Luton Airport (LTN), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) NNW of HTF.
• De Havilland had been developing and manufacturing propellers and piston engines in addition to airframes.
• Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF) has 2 runways.
• Because of Hatfield Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 254 feet, planes can take off or land at Hatfield Aerodrome 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 Hatfield Aerodrome History Trail was officially opened on 24 November 2010.