Nonstop flight route between Ramstein, Germany and Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ramstein Air Base (RMS), Ramstein, Germany and Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand would travel a Great Circle distance of 11,587 miles (or 18,648 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 Kapiti Coast 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 Kapiti Coast 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):

• In addition to being known as "Ramstein Air Base", another name for RMS is "Ramstein AB".
• One legacy of the two separate air bases is that the north side of Ramstein retained a separate APO from the south side.
• The new 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing stood up on 4 September 2008.
• 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.
• 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 AAFCE also commanded the 2nd Allied Tactical Air Force and the 4th ATAF.
• 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 Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ):

• Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) has 3 runways.
• As recently as 1992, alternate sites for a new airport for Wellington were investigated, including Paraparaumu, but a decision was made to upgrade Wellington Airport's existing site.
• The furthest airport from Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Kapiti Coast Airport (meaning Kapiti Coast Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,411 miles (19,973 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
• In early 2007, the airport was sold by its first private owners to property developer Noel Robinson for NZ$40 million.
• The closest airport to Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Wellington International Airport (WLG), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) SSW of PPQ.
• Because of Kapiti Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at Kapiti Coast 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 original runway dimensions were 1350 m x 45 m with an 85 m starter extension available on runway 16, nearly touching Kapiti Road, which runs past the aerodrome.
• Originally government-owned, the Kapiti Coast Airport was the greater Wellington region's main airport until Wellington International Airport re-opened in 1959.
• This re-development was spurred by interest from Air New Zealand to operate Q300 aircraft.