Nonstop flight route between Reims, France and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE), Reims, France and Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,347 miles (or 16,652 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 Reims-Champagne Air Base and Essendon 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 Reims-Champagne Air Base and Essendon 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 Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE):

• Reims – Champagne Air Base is a former Front-line French Air Force NATO air base.
• The first unit to arrive at Reims was the Breguet 19–equipped 12th Regiment, which arrived from the Occupied Rhineland airdrome at Lachen-Speyerdorf.
• Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE) currently has only 1 runway.
• A jet-capable 8000' jet runway and taxiways were laid down to the southwest along with additional aircraft ramp space, dispersals with hardened Tab-Vs, hangars and a support area.
• It was liberated by Allied ground forces 30 August 1944 during the Northern France Campaign.
• The closest airport to Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE) is Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) WSW of RHE.
• The base was reactivated in 1949 as an active French Air Force base.
• Because of Reims-Champagne Air Base's relatively low elevation of 314 feet, planes can take off or land at Reims-Champagne Air Base 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 Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Reims-Champagne Air Base (meaning Reims-Champagne Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,056 miles (19,402 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Reims-Champagne Air Base", another name for RHE is "Base aérienne 112Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) A-62".

Facts about Essendon Airport (MEB):

• Because of Essendon Airport's relatively low elevation of 282 feet, planes can take off or land at Essendon 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.
• Originally the airport had grass runways with the first tenants moving in from December 1921, including H.J.
• Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
• A variety of aircraft were used through Essendon in the 1960s - Lockheed L-188 Electras.
• The furthest airport from Essendon Airport (MEB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Essendon Airport (meaning Essendon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,192 miles (19,620 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• In addition to being known as "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".