Nonstop flight route between Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Richards Bay Airport (RCB), Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN), Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,956 miles (or 16,022 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 Richards Bay Airport and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield, 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 Richards Bay Airport and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield. 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 Richards Bay Airport (RCB):

• Because of Richards Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 109 feet, planes can take off or land at Richards Bay 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.
• Richards Bay Airport (RCB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hluhluwe Airport (HLW), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) NNE of RCB.
• The furthest airport from Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,689 miles (18,812 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.

Facts about Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN):

• The German Air Force Tactical Training Center activated at Holloman 1 May 1996.
• The Holloman Air Development Center became the base operating unit on 10 October 1952, and the 3,500 ft rocket-powered sled was first run on 19 March 1954.
• Holloman is located in New Mexico's Tularosa Basin between the Sacramento and San Andres mountain ranges.
• As of November 2006 there are 650 German military personnel and 25 Tornado aircraft assigned to Holloman AFB.
• In addition to being known as "Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield", another name for HMN is "Holloman AFB".
• The Aero-Medical Field Laboratory at Holloman "conducted space flight training with chimpanzees 1961-1962", including Ham the Chimp launched 31 January 1961 and ENOS on an orbital flight.
• The 49th Wing is the host unit at Holloman Air Force Base, supporting national security objectives with mission-ready F-22 Raptors, Air Transportable Medical Clinic and BEAR Base assets.
• The closest airport to Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN) is Alamogordo–White Sands Regional Airport (ALM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) E of HMN.
• Aircraft of the 96th Test Group carry the tail code "HT".
• The furthest airport from Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,323 miles (18,222 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.