Nonstop flight route between Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between King Khalid International Airport (RUH), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and RAF Lyneham (LYE), Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,133 miles (or 5,043 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 King Khalid International Airport and RAF Lyneham, 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 King Khalid International Airport and RAF Lyneham. 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 King Khalid International Airport (RUH):

• The furthest airport from King Khalid International Airport (RUH) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is nearly antipodal to King Khalid International Airport (meaning King Khalid International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Totegegie Airport), and is located 12,273 miles (19,752 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• There is a total of 1,196 metres of the walkways, which are actually wide conveyor belts which operate at floor level and move at a speed of close to 1 metre per second.
• KKIA was the first airport in the Kingdom to install airbridges, to speed up handling and turnaround times.
• The 1703rd ARW was composed mainly of KC-135 Stratotankers and used the north western firehouse as its headquarters of air operations.
• King Khalid International Airport (RUH) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "King Khalid International Airport", another name for RUH is "مطار الملك خالد الدولي".
• The closest airport to King Khalid International Airport (RUH) is Dawadmi Domestic Airport (DWD), which is located 166 miles (266 kilometers) WSW of RUH.
• King Khalid International Airport handled 13,919,000 passengers last year.
• A general aviation complex has been constructed north of runway number 1 for use by private aircraft and is reached by a special access road which runs north from the airport access highway.

Facts about RAF Lyneham (LYE):

• The airfield was built in 1939, necessitating the demolition of Lyneham Court manor house, the buildings of Cranley Farm and the village's tennis courts.
• From 1958 Lyneham became one of the 18 Stations designated as dispersal airfields for the RAF's nuclear deterrent V bomber Force.
• A ceremony, attended by the Prime Minister David Cameron, was held at RAF Brize Norton on 31 August 2011 to mark the formal transfer the role of repatriations from RAF Lyneham.
• RAF Lyneham (LYE) has 2 runways.
• Because of RAF Lyneham's relatively low elevation of 512 feet, planes can take off or land at RAF Lyneham 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 furthest airport from RAF Lyneham (LYE) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,913 miles (19,172 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• 511 Squadron was formed again at RAF Lyneham on 15 December 1959, as the second squadron to operate the Bristol Britannia on long-range trooping flights.
• The closest airport to RAF Lyneham (LYE) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) NE of LYE.
• A single enemy aircraft attacked the station on 19 September 1940, dropping an incendiary and two high explosive bombs before strafing part of the airfield.