Nonstop flight route between Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia and Mthatha, South Africa:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from RTS to UTT:
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- About this route
- RTS Airport Information
- UTT Airport Information
- Facts about RTS
- Facts about UTT
- Map of Nearest Airports to RTS
- List of Nearest Airports to RTS
- Map of Furthest Airports from RTS
- List of Furthest Airports from RTS
- Map of Nearest Airports to UTT
- List of Nearest Airports to UTT
- Map of Furthest Airports from UTT
- List of Furthest Airports from UTT
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Rottnest Airport (RTS), Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia and Mthatha Airport (UTT), Mthatha, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,942 miles (or 7,954 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 Rottnest Airport and Mthatha 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 Rottnest Airport and Mthatha Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RTS / YRTI |
Airport Name: | Rottnest Airport |
Location: | Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°0'24"S by 115°32'22"E |
Operator/Owner: | Rottnest Island Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 12 feet (4 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from RTS |
More Information: | RTS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | UTT / FAUT |
Airport Name: | Mthatha Airport |
Location: | Mthatha, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 31°32'47"S by 28°40'31"E |
Area Served: | Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
Operator/Owner: | Provincial Government |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 2429 feet (740 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from UTT |
More Information: | UTT Maps & Info |
Facts about Rottnest Airport (RTS):
- MacRobertson Miller Airlines took over services after Wood's Airways using both DC-3 and Fokker F27 Friendship, until the route became uneconomical.
- The single 1,290 m × 18 m runway runs east-west and is situated behind Thomsons Bay and south of Government House Lake.
- Woods Airways VH-WAB, c.1953
- Because of Rottnest Airport's relatively low elevation of 12 feet, planes can take off or land at Rottnest 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.
- Woods Airways which was run by pioneer aviator Jimmy Woods, operated the Perth to Rottnest service from about 1948 with two war-surplus Royal Australian Air Force Avro Anson aircraft.
- The furthest airport from Rottnest Airport (RTS) is L.F. Wade International Airport (BDA), which is nearly antipodal to Rottnest Airport (meaning Rottnest Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from L.F. Wade International Airport), and is located 12,409 miles (19,970 kilometers) away in Ferry Reach (near Hamilton), Bermuda.
- The closest airport to Rottnest Airport (RTS) is Jandakot Airport (JAD), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) ESE of RTS.
- Rottnest Airport (RTS) currently has only 1 runway.
- On 12 November 2006 a light twin engine charter aircraft carrying the pilot and five passengers crashed on the edge of the salt lake adjoining the airport.
Facts about Mthatha Airport (UTT):
- Mthatha Airport (UTT) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Mthatha Airport (UTT) is Margate Airport (MGH), which is located 109 miles (176 kilometers) ENE of UTT.
- The furthest airport from Mthatha Airport (UTT) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,642 miles (18,736 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.