Nonstop flight route between Louisville, Kentucky, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Louisville International Airport (SDF), Louisville, Kentucky, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,050 miles (or 6,518 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 Louisville International Airport and RAF Lakenheath, 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 Louisville International Airport and RAF Lakenheath. 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 Louisville International Airport (SDF):

• In addition to being known as "Louisville International Airport", another name for SDF is "Standiford Field".
• The furthest airport from Louisville International Airport (SDF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,239 miles (18,088 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Standiford Field was built by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1941 on a parcel of land south of Louisville that was found not to have flooded during the Ohio River flood of 1937.
• Louisville International-Standiford Field covers 1,200 acres at an elevation of 501 feet above mean sea level.
• Worldport is the worldwide air hub for UPS located at the Louisville International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky.
• UPS Airlines is currently the airport's largest operator.
• Louisville International Airport handled 3,349,162 passengers last year.
• Because of Louisville International Airport's relatively low elevation of 501 feet, planes can take off or land at Louisville 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.
• The closest airport to Louisville International Airport (SDF) is Bowman Field (LOU), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) NE of SDF.
• Louisville International Airport (SDF) has 3 runways.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• The reason for the departure of the two bomber squadrons was Lakenheath's selection for upgrading to a Very Heavy Bomber airfield.
• In 1940, the Air Ministry selected Lakenheath as an alternative for RAF Mildenhall and used it as a decoy airfield.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• On 1 May 1951, Lakenheath was transferred from USAFE to SAC, and placed under the 3909th Air Base Group.
• A near nuclear accident occurred on 27 July 1956 – when a B-47 bomber crashed into a storage igloo at Lakenheath containing three MK-6 nuclear weapons while on a routine training mission.