Nonstop flight route between Rotterdam, Netherlands and Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM), Rotterdam, Netherlands and Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,048 miles (or 4,904 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 Rotterdam The Hague Airport and Shearwater Heliport, 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 Rotterdam The Hague Airport and Shearwater Heliport. 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 Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM):

• The route with the longest continual service, to London Heathrow and operated by KLM Cityhopper, was suspended in 2008.
• The closest airport to Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) is Valkenburg Naval Air Base (LID), which is located only 15 miles (23 kilometers) N of RTM.
• Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) currently has only 1 runway.
• Rotterdam The Hague Airport handled 159,014 passengers last year.
• Because of Rotterdam The Hague Airport's relatively low elevation of -14 feet, planes can take off or land at Rotterdam The Hague 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.
• After World War II, the Dutch government decided that a second national airport was needed in addition to Schiphol.
• Most flights today are operated by regional turboprop aircraft such as the Fokker 50, Dash 8 and ATR aircraft and smaller mainline jets such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 series or the Embraer 190.
• The furthest airport from Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,872 miles (19,107 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• The furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• By 2002 only runway 10/28 remained open.
• During the late 1990s and early 2000s the Shearwater airfield was scaled back significantly as the facility transitioned to a heliport with surplus lands identified and transferred to Canada Lands Company.
• Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater Heliport 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.
• 12 Wing's squadrons at Shearwater Heliport in Nova Scotia and at Patricia Bay in British Columbia currently operate the Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King but is expected to re-equip with the Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone commencing in 2012 with the conclusion of the Maritime Helicopter Project.
• Defence cutbacks and unit and facility realignments from 1994 to 1996 saw CFB Shearwater stand down as a separate formation and the facility merged as an airfield attached to CFB Halifax.