Nonstop flight route between Reading, Pennsylvania, United States and Tripoli, Libya:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Reading Regional Airport (RDG), Reading, Pennsylvania, United States and Mitiga International Airport (MJI), Tripoli, Libya would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,759 miles (or 7,659 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 Reading Regional Airport and Mitiga International Airport, 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 Reading Regional Airport and Mitiga International Airport. 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 Reading Regional Airport (RDG):

• Aircraft used for training were the Curtiss O-52 Owl.
• Reading Army Airfield opened on 1 June 1943, with the 309th Base Headquarters and Air Base Squadron as its host unit.
• Reading Regional Airport (RDG) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Reading Regional Airport (RDG) is Heritage Field (PTW), which is located 24 miles (38 kilometers) ESE of RDG.
• In addition to being known as "Reading Regional Airport", another name for RDG is "Carl A. Spaatz FieldReading Army Airfield".
• In the 1950s Reading Air Services sponsored the National Maintenance & Operations Meeting, better known as the Reading Airshow, and later Reading Aerofest.
• On 1 June 1944 the 309th Air Base Squadron was re-designated the 85th Army Air Force Base Unit.
• Because of Reading Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 344 feet, planes can take off or land at Reading Regional 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 Reading Regional Airport (RDG) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,683 miles (18,802 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Mitiga International Airport (MJI):

• Mitiga International Airport (MJI) has 2 runways.
• On 13 March 2011, Ali Atiyya, a colonel of the Libyan Air Force at the airport, defected and joined the anti-Gaddafi forces.
• The furthest airport from Mitiga International Airport (MJI) is Rarotonga International Airport (RAR), which is located 11,524 miles (18,546 kilometers) away in Avarua, Cook Islands.
• The closest airport to Mitiga International Airport (MJI) is Tripoli International Airport (TIP), which is located only 18 miles (28 kilometers) SSW of MJI.
• Because of Mitiga International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Mitiga International 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 airport was originally built in 1923 and served as Mellaha Air Base for the Italian Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Mitiga International Airport", another name for MJI is "مطار امعيتيقة الدولي".
• The fourteen-hour 9,300-kilometre round trip to Libya required numerous in-air refuelings, because countries closer to Libya – Spain, Italy, France, and Greece – had refused American planes permission to fly over or from bases in their countries.
• During the 2011 Libyan civil war, the The Times and The Guardian reported claims that the airport had been taken over by protestors opposed to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.