Nonstop flight route between Johannesburg, South Africa and Watson Island, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from QRA to MPB:
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- About this route
- QRA Airport Information
- MPB Airport Information
- Facts about QRA
- Facts about MPB
- Map of Nearest Airports to QRA
- List of Nearest Airports to QRA
- Map of Furthest Airports from QRA
- List of Furthest Airports from QRA
- Map of Nearest Airports to MPB
- List of Nearest Airports to MPB
- Map of Furthest Airports from MPB
- List of Furthest Airports from MPB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Rand Airport (QRA), Johannesburg, South Africa and Miami Seaplane Base (MPB), Watson Island, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,049 miles (or 12,954 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 Rand Airport and Miami Seaplane Base, 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 Rand Airport and Miami Seaplane Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | QRA / FAGM |
Airport Name: | Rand Airport |
Location: | Johannesburg, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 26°14'32"S by 28°9'3"E |
Operator/Owner: | Rand Airport Management Company (Pty) Ltd. |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 5482 feet (1,671 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from QRA |
More Information: | QRA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MPB / |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Watson Island, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 25°46'41"N by 80°10'13"W |
Area Served: | Miami, Florida |
Operator/Owner: | City of Miami Property Mgmt Section |
Airport Type: | Public use |
Elevation: | 0 feet (0 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MPB |
More Information: | MPB Maps & Info |
Facts about Rand Airport (QRA):
- The airport is also home to the Flying Lions Aerobatic Team.
- SAA moved its headquarters to Palmietfontein Airport in 1948 because of runway length constraints.
- The closest airport to Rand Airport (QRA) is O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) NE of QRA.
- de Havilland DH 104 Dove and Lockheed L18-08 Lodestar on view at the South African Airways Museum Society at Rand Airport.
- The following navigational aids are installed for non precision instrument approaches at this airport.
- Because of Rand Airport's high elevation of 5,482 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at QRA. Combined with a high temperature, this could make QRA a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Today, the airport hosts air charter operators, flying schools and a number of aircraft maintenance organizations, as well as pilot shops, car hire and other aviation-related enterprises.
- The furthest airport from Rand Airport (QRA) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,977 miles (19,275 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
- Rand Airport (QRA) has 2 runways.
- Rand Airport is notorious for its hot and high conditions and relatively short runways.
Facts about Miami Seaplane Base (MPB):
- Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,582 miles (18,640 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- In addition to being known as "Miami Seaplane Base", another name for MPB is "X44".
- Because of Miami Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Miami Seaplane 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 Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) is Miami International Airport (MIA), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) W of MPB.