Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Marietta, Georgia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Dobbins Air Reserve Base (MGE), Marietta, Georgia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,633 miles (or 7,455 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 Dobbins Air Reserve 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 Dobbins Air Reserve 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.
• 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.
• 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.
• Base aérienne 125 Istres Advanced Landing Ground Y-17

Facts about Dobbins Air Reserve Base (MGE):

• Also in 1948 the airfield became Marietta Air Force Base as a result of the creation of the United States Air Force.
• The closest airport to Dobbins Air Reserve Base (MGE) is Fulton County Airport (FTY), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) S of MGE.
• The furthest airport from Dobbins Air Reserve Base (MGE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,314 miles (18,208 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In May, the local government issued bonds to purchase 563 acres located 3½ miles southeast of Marietta along the western side of the new four-lane superhighway, U.S.
• In the spring of 1943 the adjacent Bell Aircraft Company's factory, an additional plant and a Martin plant at Offutt Field, Omaha, Nebraska) for manufacturing B-29 Superfortresses was completed.
• In June 1992 the official name was changed from Dobbins Air Force Base to Dobbins Air Reserve Base.
• In addition to being known as "Dobbins Air Reserve Base", another name for MGE is "Dobbins ARB".