Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Kaunakakai, Hawaii, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Molokai Airport (MKK), Kaunakakai, Hawaii, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,825 miles (or 12,593 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 Molokai 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 Molokai 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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".

Facts about Molokai Airport (MKK):

• The furthest airport from Molokai Airport (MKK) is Maun Airport (MUB), which is nearly antipodal to Molokai Airport (meaning Molokai Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Maun Airport), and is located 12,348 miles (19,873 kilometers) away in Maun, Botswana.
• The closest airport to Molokai Airport (MKK) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) ENE of MKK.
• Molokai Airport (MKK) has 2 runways.
• Because of Molokai Airport's relatively low elevation of 454 feet, planes can take off or land at Molokai 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.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 89,468 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 65,984 enplanements in 2009, and 88,688 in 2010.
• Molokai Airport occupies 288 acres at an elevation of 454 ft above mean sea level on the central plateau of the island of Molokai.