Nonstop flight route between Rotorua, New Zealand and Wichita, Kansas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Rotorua International Airport (ROT), Rotorua, New Zealand and McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB), Wichita, Kansas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,582 miles (or 12,203 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 Rotorua International Airport and McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield, 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 Rotorua International Airport and McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield. 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 Rotorua International Airport (ROT):

• Rotorua International Airport (ROT) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Rotorua International Airport (ROT) is Tauranga Airport (TRG), which is located 31 miles (50 kilometers) NNW of ROT.
• The conversion of Rotorua Airport to an international airport has encountered both strong opposition and support from locals.
• Rotorua International Airport handled 227,578 passengers last year.
• Because of Rotorua International Airport's relatively low elevation of 936 feet, planes can take off or land at Rotorua 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.
• Today it has more frequent operations, being by Air New Zealand and its regional subsidiaries.
• Qantas previously served Rotorua from Christchurch using Boeing 737 aircraft, but this service was withdrawn in 2009.
• The furthest airport from Rotorua International Airport (ROT) is Ciudad Real Central Airport (CQM), which is nearly antipodal to Rotorua International Airport (meaning Rotorua International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ciudad Real Central Airport), and is located 12,383 miles (19,928 kilometers) away in Ciudad Real, Spain.

Facts about McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB):

• The furthest airport from McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,740 miles (17,285 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Cessna Aircraft Field (CEA), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) NNE of IAB.
• In spite of the difficulty of building an installation and initiating an entirely new program simultaneously, the base developed into a highly specialized training center.
• On 21 July 1964, the 355th Tactical Fighter Wing was also reactivated at McConnell with four F-105 squadrons.
• Other facilities at the airport, however, were meager.
• In addition to being known as "McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield", another name for IAB is "McConnell AFB".
• However, the name was changed to McConnell Air Force Base after less than a year in honor of Wichita brothers Fred and Thomas McConnell, both Air Force pilots and World War II veterans.
• Wichita Army Airfield
• A lease between the federal government and the city was concluded and on 1 March 1942, the AAF Materiel Center, Midwestern Procurement District was established at Wichita Army Airfield.
• In August 1941, the Kansas National Guard 127th Observation Squadron was activated as the first military unit assigned to the Wichita airport.