Nonstop flight route between Roanoke, Virginia, United States and Jijiga, Ethiopia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA), Roanoke, Virginia, United States and Wilwal International Airport (JIJ), Jijiga, Ethiopia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,540 miles (or 12,135 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport and Wilwal 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport and Wilwal 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA):

• Piedmont service originally commenced on April 16, 1948, with only a pair of flights, which carried 42 passengers.
• The expansion also resulted in the creation of a tunnel beneath Runway 06/24 along Virginia State Route 118.
• In addition to being known as "Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport", another name for ROA is "Woodrum Field".
• Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) has 2 runways.
• After World War I, the idea of opening an airport to serve the Roanoke Valley became more of a priority for local leaders.
• The furthest airport from Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,559 miles (18,603 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Although Roanoke has never had international passenger service, in 2001, the Airport Commission was prepared to change the airport's name to Roanoke International Airport.
• The closest airport to Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) is Virginia Tech Montgomery Executive Airport (BCB), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) WSW of ROA.
• The current terminal building was designed by the Charlotte based architectural firm of Odell Associates and was built to serve as a replacement for the 1953 terminal, later demolished in 2005.

Facts about Wilwal International Airport (JIJ):

• Because of Wilwal International Airport's high elevation of 5,413 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at JIJ. Combined with a high temperature, this could make JIJ a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The closest airport to Wilwal International Airport (JIJ) is Borama Airport (BXX), which is located 46 miles (73 kilometers) NNE of JIJ.
• By the 1990s, the Garaad Wiil-Waal Airport was one of 10 bases of the Ethiopian Air Force.
• Wilwal International Airport (JIJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Wilwal International Airport (JIJ) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is nearly antipodal to Wilwal International Airport (meaning Wilwal International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Atuona Airport), and is located 12,302 miles (19,799 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.