Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Memphis, Tennessee, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Memphis International Airport (MEM), Memphis, Tennessee, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,826 miles (or 7,767 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 Memphis International 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 Memphis International 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):

• 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".
• 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.
• 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.
• On 31 March 1992, a Boeing 707 of Kabo Air, a Nigerian company, made an emergency landing at Istres after engines 3 and 4 had separated from the wing in turbulence at 35,000 feet.
• 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.
• 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 Memphis International Airport (MEM):

• Because of Memphis International Airport's relatively low elevation of 341 feet, planes can take off or land at Memphis International Airport 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.
• Since 2009 the airport has been a small hub for small regional airline SeaPort Airlines, which has single-engine flights to communities in Arkansas through the Essential Air Service program.
• The 164th Airlift Wing of the Tennessee Air National Guard is based at the co-located Memphis Air National Guard Base, operating C-17 Globe master III transport aircraft.
• Memphis is ranked the 41st busiest US airport by enplanements with 4,598,186 passengers using the airport in 2013, a 32% decrease from the previous year.
• The furthest airport from Memphis International Airport (MEM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,010 miles (17,719 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Memphis International Airport (MEM) is Olive Branch Airport (OLV), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) ESE of MEM.
• Memphis International Airport handled 7,874,888 passengers last year.
• Memphis International Airport (MEM) has 4 runways.