Nonstop flight route between Istres, France and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France and CFB Edmonton (YED), Edmonton, Alberta, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,801 miles (or 7,727 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 CFB Edmonton, 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 CFB Edmonton. 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.
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• 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.
• 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• 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 CFB Edmonton (YED):

• CFB Edmonton is currently the headquarters of 3rd Canadian Division, the highest military authority in western Canada, and a number of brigade groups, including 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, the only Regular Force brigade group in the region.
• The furthest airport from CFB Edmonton (YED) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,216 miles (16,441 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The closest airport to CFB Edmonton (YED) is Edmonton International Airport (YEG), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) S of YED.
• In addition to being known as "CFB Edmonton", other names for YED include "Edmonton/Namao Heliport Edmonton Garrison" and "Steele Barracks".
• On June 7, 2013, the base hosted the raising of a rainbow flag to kick off Edmonton Pride, the first time in Canadian history that the flag has flown on a military base.
• In 1968, when Canada's armed forces were amalgamated, RCAF Station Namao was redesignated Canadian Forces Base Edmonton and was under command of the new Air Transport Command and later Air Command.
• During the Cold War RCAF Station Namao was used by the United States Strategic Air Command, which constructed a "Nose Dock" capable of servicing the nose and wings of heavy jet bombers and tankers on the south side of the airfield.