Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Saba, Caribbean Netherlands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (SAB), Saba, Caribbean Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,300 miles (or 6,921 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 Juancho E. Yrausquin 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 Juancho E. Yrausquin 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.

Facts about Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (SAB):

• Because of Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport's relatively low elevation of 60 feet, planes can take off or land at Juancho E. Yrausquin 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.
• Although the airport is closed to jet traffic, regional airline propeller aircraft are able to land there under waivers from The Netherlands Antilles' Civil Aviation Authority.
• The closest airport to Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (SAB) is F.D. Roosevelt Airport (EUX), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) ESE of SAB.
• Jet aircraft are unable to land at the airport, because the runway is too short.
• The furthest airport from Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (SAB) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is nearly antipodal to Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (meaning Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Karratha Airport), and is located 12,225 miles (19,674 kilometers) away in Karratha / Dampier, Western Australia, Australia.
• Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (SAB) currently has only 1 runway.