Nonstop flight route between Ramstein, Germany and Gary, Indiana (near Chicago), United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ramstein Air Base (RMS), Ramstein, Germany and Gary/Chicago International Airport (GYY), Gary, Indiana (near Chicago), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,317 miles (or 6,947 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 Ramstein Air Base and Gary/Chicago 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 Ramstein Air Base and Gary/Chicago 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 Ramstein Air Base (RMS):

• During the initial postwar era, the USAAF repaired several former Luftwaffe airfields in Bavaria which was part of the American occupation zone of Germany.
• Besides the U.S. Air Force, the installation's population includes Belgian, British, Canadian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, and Polish personnel.
• Enough construction was completed in mid-1952, that Landstuhl AB was opened on 5 August.
• In addition to being known as "Ramstein Air Base", another name for RMS is "Ramstein AB".
• From 2004 to 2006, Ramstein Air Base underwent an extensive expansion with a major construction project – including an all-new airport terminal, among other new facilities, through the so-called Rhein-Main Transition Program which was initiated in support of the total closure of Rhein-Main Air Base on 30 December 2005 and transferring all its former capacities to Ramstein Air Base and Spangdahlem Air Base.
• On 31 January 1973, several headquarters were relocated into and out of Ramstein, when Seventeenth AF moved to Sembach Air Base to make room for the expected move of HQ USAFE to Ramstein.
• The closest airport to Ramstein Air Base (RMS) is Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) ENE of RMS.
• The furthest airport from Ramstein Air Base (RMS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Ramstein Air Base (meaning Ramstein Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,003 miles (19,316 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Ramstein's wings are assigned to the headquarters 3rd Air Force also based at Ramstein AB, which controls most of the USAF Wings throughout Europe.

Facts about Gary/Chicago International Airport (GYY):

• The furthest airport from Gary/Chicago International Airport (GYY) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,103 miles (17,868 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• For many years airplanes seen in the Chicago Air & Water Show have flown from here, including the {U.S.
• Because of Gary/Chicago International Airport's relatively low elevation of 591 feet, planes can take off or land at Gary/Chicago 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.
• Gary/Chicago International Airport (GYY) has 2 runways.
• Gary/Chicago was a hub for seasonal carrier SkyValue Airlines from December 2006 to April 2007.
• The closest airport to Gary/Chicago International Airport (GYY) is Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) NW of GYY.
• Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 4,353 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 1,633 in 2009 and 2,143 in 2010.
• Gary/Chicago International Airport covers 675 acres at an elevation of 591 feet above mean sea level.
• Expanding Gary/Chicago Airport is an alternative to constructing a new airport near Peotone, Illinois, 30 miles south of Chicago.