Nonstop flight route between San Francisco, California, United States and Aachen, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California, United States and Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), Aachen, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,577 miles (or 8,976 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 San Francisco International Airport and Merzbrück Airfield, 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 San Francisco International Airport and Merzbrück Airfield. 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 San Francisco International Airport (SFO):

• The furthest airport from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The airport opened on May 7, 1927, on 150 acres of cow pasture.
• Because of San Francisco International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at San Francisco 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 San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Half Moon Bay AirportHalf Moon Bay Flight Strip (HAF), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) SW of SFO.
• On July 14, 2008, SFO was voted Best International Airport in North America for 2008 in the World Airports Survey by Skytrax.
• San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has 4 runways.
• In 1954 the airport's Central Passenger Terminal opened.
• Formerly known as the "North Terminal," Terminal 3 has Boarding Area E and Boarding Area F has 26 gates.
• San Francisco International Airport handled 44,477,209 passengers last year.
• In 1989 a master plan and Environmental Impact Report were prepared to guide development over the next two decades.

Facts about Merzbrück Airfield (AAH):

• The closest airport to Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) is NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) NNW of AAH.
• In addition to being known as "Merzbrück Airfield", another name for AAH is "Flugplatz Merzbrück".
• The furthest airport from Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,937 miles (19,210 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• With the outbreak of World War II, Merzbrück was used by the Luftwaffe, with IV./LG 1 and I./St.G.
• Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Merzbrück Airfield's relatively low elevation of 623 feet, planes can take off or land at Merzbrück Airfield 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.