Nonstop flight route between Scottsdale, Arizona, United States and St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Scottsdale Airport (SCF), Scottsdale, Arizona, United States and MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,144 miles (or 8,278 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 Scottsdale Airport and MoD St Athan, 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 Scottsdale Airport and MoD St Athan. 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 Scottsdale Airport (SCF):

• There are two main Fixed-base operators located on the field, Scottsdale Air Center and Landmark Aviation.
• The closest airport to Scottsdale Airport (SCF) is Phoenix Deer Valley Airport (DVT), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) WNW of SCF.
• In addition to being known as "Scottsdale Airport", other names for SCF include "Thunderbird Field #2" and "SDL".
• During World War II the airfield was used by the United States Army Air Forces Army Air Forces Training Command as "Thunderbird Field #2" on June 22, 1942, as a primary flight training school for aviation cadets.
• The furthest airport from Scottsdale Airport (SCF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,436 miles (18,404 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Scottsdale Airport (SCF) currently has only 1 runway.
• Neighbors complain about aircraft noise around the airport, with over 9,000 complaints being logged in 2004 alone.

Facts about MoD St Athan (DGX):

• In 2009 building work was due to commence on a new defence training academy with its heart at St Athan.
• The MOD continued to negotiate the project with the Metrix Consortium, but the price rose several times, reaching £14 billion in mid-2009.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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.
• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• During the 1960s, a driving school was established.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• The only squadrons to operate out of St Athan on a regular basis are the University of Wales Air Squadron, flying Grob Tutors and No 634 Volunteer Gliding Squadron using Vigilant T.1s.
• Just before 1100 GMT on 11 February 2009, two Grob Tutor aircraft flying out of St Athan were involved in a mid-air collision in which two Air Training Corps cadets and their instructors, both RAF pilots, died.