Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Roswell, New Mexico, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Roswell International Air Center (ROW), Roswell, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,518 miles (or 8,880 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 Roswell International Air Center, 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 Roswell International Air Center. 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 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".
• Sometime after World War II, until May 1958 Base Aérienne 125 was host to the Royal Air Force Liaison Party, that serviced transient British and Commonwealth military aircraft staging to and from the United Kingdom.
• Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Roswell International Air Center (ROW):

• The closest airport to Roswell International Air Center (ROW) is Artesia Municipal Airport (ATS), which is located 31 miles (50 kilometers) S of ROW.
• Roswell International Air Center, also known as Roswell Industrial Air Center, is a city-owned public-use airport located seven miles south of the central business district of Roswell, a city in Chaves County, New Mexico, United States.
• Currently, American Eagle operates Embraer ERJ-140 regional jets on nonstop flights to Dallas/Ft.
• From 1941 to 1967, the facility was known as Roswell Army International Airfield during World War II, and Walker Air Force Base during the Cold War.
• The base was renamed in his honor on January 13, 1948.
• RIAC is the home of the New Mexico Rehabilitation Center.
• The airport was used by Felix Baumgartner to launch his record-breaking freefall jump from the stratosphere on October 14, 2012.
• The furthest airport from Roswell International Air Center (ROW) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,241 miles (18,090 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Roswell International Air Center (ROW) has 2 runways.
• The site was used for several years to launch stratospheric balloons for Air Force projects.