Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Mayport, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Naval Station Mayport (NRB), Mayport, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,641 miles (or 7,469 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 Naval Station Mayport, 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 Naval Station Mayport. 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 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 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.

Facts about Naval Station Mayport (NRB):

• Since its commissioning in December 1942, NS Mayport has grown to become the third largest naval surface fleet concentration area in the United States.
• The Virginia congressional delegation has fought the loss of even one carrier's boost to their economy by citing other areas such as shipbuilding to spend the navy's tight budget.
• Naval Station Mayport (NRB) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Station Mayport", another name for NRB is "Admiral David L. McDonald Field".
• Because of Naval Station Mayport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Station Mayport 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 Naval Station Mayport (NRB) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,472 miles (18,463 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Naval Station Mayport (NRB) is Jacksonville Executive at Craig Airport (CRG), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) SW of NRB.