Nonstop flight route between Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Jacksonville, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Richards Bay Airport (RCB), Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and NAS Jacksonville (NIP), Jacksonville, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,512 miles (or 13,699 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 NAS Jacksonville, 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 NAS Jacksonville. 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.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hluhluwe Airport (HLW), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) NNE of RCB.
• Richards Bay Airport (RCB) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about NAS Jacksonville (NIP):

• Because of NAS Jacksonville's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS Jacksonville 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 "NAS Jacksonville", another name for NIP is "Towers Field".
• The United States Air Force Air Defense Command established a Phase III Mobile Radar station at NAS Jacksonville in 1 July 1957 with the 679th Aircraft Warning and Control Squadron operating AN/FPS-3, AN/FPS-8, and AN/MPS-14 radars as part of the ADC radar network.
• Prior to the commissioning, on September 7, Commander Jimmy Grant became the first pilot to land on the still unfinished runway in his N3N-3 biplane.
• NAS Jacksonville (NIP) has 2 runways.
• A piece of history and Navy and Marine Corps tradition was lost in 1986 when the last unit of Marines left NAS Jacksonville.
• The closest airport to NAS Jacksonville (NIP) is Jacksonville Executive at Craig Airport (CRG), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) NE of NIP.
• In the mid-1950s, an air traffic control center for joint use by the Navy, Air Force, and Civil Aeronautics Administration was approved and completed at a cost of $325,000.
• The furthest airport from NAS Jacksonville (NIP) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,460 miles (18,444 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Today, 23,000 civilian and active-duty personnel are employed on the base.