Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Bissau, Guinea-Bissau:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB), Bissau, Guinea-Bissau would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,507 miles (or 4,034 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 Osvaldo Vieira 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 Osvaldo Vieira 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):

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

Facts about Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB):

• Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) currently has only 1 runway.
• Osvaldo Vieira International Airport is an airport that serves the city of Bissau, the capital city of Guinea-Bissau.
• Previously known as Bissalanca, during the Guinea-Bissau War of Independence it was used as a base by the Portuguese Air Force.
• Because of Osvaldo Vieira International Airport's relatively low elevation of 129 feet, planes can take off or land at Osvaldo Vieira 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.
• The airport had to be closed on June 7, 1998 due to intense fighting in and around Bissau.
• Currently, Senegal Airlines has a daily flight to Dakar, which continues to Praia twice a week.
• The closest airport to Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) is Bubaque Airport (BQE), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) SSW of OXB.
• The furthest airport from Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (OXB) is Kirakira Airport (IRA), which is nearly antipodal to Osvaldo Vieira International Airport (meaning Osvaldo Vieira International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kirakira Airport), and is located 12,243 miles (19,703 kilometers) away in Kirakira, Makira Island, Solomon Islands.