Nonstop flight route between Skagway, Alaska, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Skagway Airport (SGY), Skagway, Alaska, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,326 miles (or 6,963 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 Skagway 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 Skagway 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 Skagway Airport (SGY):

• Skagway Airport is a state-owned public-use airport in the city of Skagway, Alaska.
• Because of Skagway Airport's relatively low elevation of 44 feet, planes can take off or land at Skagway 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 furthest airport from Skagway Airport (SGY) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,474 miles (16,857 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Skagway Airport (SGY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Skagway Airport (SGY) is Haines Airport (HNS), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) SSW of SGY.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• The first use of Lakenheath Warren as a Royal Flying Corps airfield was in World War I, when the area was made into a bombing and ground-attack range for aircraft flying from elsewhere in the area.
• Lakenheath Airfield was used by RAF flying units on detachment late in 1941.
• The increasing tension of the Cold War lead to a re-evaluation of these deployments, and by 1953 SAC bombers began to move its heavy bomb groups further west, behind RAF fighter forces, to RAF Brize Norton, RAF Greenham Common, RAF Upper Heyford and RAF Fairford, while its shorter-range B-47 were sent to East Anglia.
• Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union in Europe began as early as 1946.
• In early 1943, three T-2 hangars were erected on the north side of the airfield for glider storage, 40 Horsa Gliders being dispersed at Lakenheath during that year.
• By 1950, Lakenheath was one of three main operating bases for the U.S.
• 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.
• Aircraft of the 48th FW carry the tail code "LN".