Nonstop flight route between Recife, Brazil and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (REC), Recife, Brazil and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,004 miles (or 9,662 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 Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport and Thule Air 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 Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport and Thule Air Base. 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 Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (REC):

• Because of Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport's relatively low elevation of 33 feet, planes can take off or land at Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre 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.
• In addition to being known as "Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport", another name for REC is "Aeroporto Internacional do Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre".
• Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport handled 6,840,276 passengers last year.
• In 1979, an agreement with Infraero was made in order to further develop the airport complex.
• The closest airport to Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (REC) is Presidente Castro Pinto International Airport (JPA), which is located 68 miles (109 kilometers) N of REC.
• Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (REC) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (REC) is Guam International Airport (GUM), which is nearly antipodal to Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport (meaning Recife/Guararapes–Gilberto Freyre International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Guam International Airport), and is located 12,066 miles (19,419 kilometers) away in Hagåtña, Guam.
• On 31 August 2009 Infraero unveiled a BRL 8.75 million investiment plan to upgrade Guararapes International Airport, focusing on the preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, Recife being one of the venue cities.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over U.S.
• There is only a brief period each year in the summer when sea ice thins sufficiently to send supply ships to the base.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
• In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
• In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".