Nonstop flight route between Ruby, Alaska, United States and Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ruby Airport (RBY), Ruby, Alaska, United States and RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,269 miles (or 6,870 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 Ruby Airport and RAF Brize Norton, 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 Ruby Airport and RAF Brize Norton. 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 Ruby Airport (RBY):

• The closest airport to Ruby Airport (RBY) is Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), which is located 43 miles (70 kilometers) W of RBY.
• Ruby Airport is a state owned, public use airport located one nautical mile southeast of the central business district of Ruby, a city in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the U.S.
• Ruby Airport (RBY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Ruby Airport (RBY) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,312 miles (16,596 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• Ruby Airport has one runway designated 3/21 with a gravel surface measuring 4,000 by 100 feet.
• Because of Ruby Airport's relatively low elevation of 658 feet, planes can take off or land at Ruby 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.

Facts about RAF Brize Norton (BZZ):

• The furthest airport from RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,888 miles (19,132 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) WSW of BZZ.
• By the 1950s Cold War tension was escalating and the United States envisaged stationing nuclear bombers in the United Kingdom as a deterrent to Soviet aggression.
• On 19 September 2005, Brize Norton was closed as part of a major upgrade project.
• In 1970 two squadrons 99 Squadron and 511 Squadron operating the Bristol Britannia moved from RAF Lyneham.
• With the closure of RAF Lyneham taking place in late 2011, the repatriation of British personnel was relocated to Brize Norton on 8 September 2011.
• During the 2003 Iraq War four anti-war protesters managed to access the main runway in an attempt to prevent aircraft taking off.
• Major infrastructure redevelopment began in 2010 ahead of the closure of RAF Lyneham in 2012, at which point Brize Norton became the sole air point of embarkation for British troops.
• On 23 May 2001 the RAF's first C-17 arrived at Brize Norton, one of six to be delivered to 99 Squadron.