Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Wichita, Kansas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Wichita Mid-Continent Airport (ICT), Wichita, Kansas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,022 miles (or 8,082 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 Wichita Mid-Continent 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 Wichita Mid-Continent 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):

• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• 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".
• 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.

Facts about Wichita Mid-Continent Airport (ICT):

• Wichita Mid-Continent Airport (ICT) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Wichita Mid-Continent Airport (ICT) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,746 miles (17,294 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Wichita Mid-Continent Airport (ICT) is McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) ESE of ICT.
• In August 1941 the Kansas National Guard 127th Observation Squadron was activated as the first military unit assigned to the Wichita airport.
• In 1951 the United States Air Force brought proceedings to condemn and acquire the Wichita Municipal Airport for what was to become McConnell Air Force Base.
• The original terminal was eventually acquired by the City of Wichita in 1980.
• Other airports in the Wichita metro area