Nonstop flight route between Sion, Switzerland and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sion Airport (SIR), Sion, Switzerland and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,447 miles (or 8,766 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 Sion Airport and King Shaka International, 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 Sion Airport and King Shaka International. 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 Sion Airport (SIR):

• Sion Airport (SIR) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Sion Airport (SIR) is Aosta Valley Airport (AOT), which is located 33 miles (54 kilometers) S of SIR.
• In addition to being known as "Sion Airport", other names for SIR include "Aéroport de Sion" and "LSGS /LSMS".
• The furthest airport from Sion Airport (SIR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Sion Airport (meaning Sion Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,188 miles (19,615 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• The project was then hit by a tender war between the Illembe consortium and the Indiza consortium.
• Despite wide expectations that the airport would be named "King Shaka International Airport", it emerged in October 2009 that the airport needed to undergo a formal naming process.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• Although the larger airport was built to grow the area's international services, it is also a key airport for domestic services throughout South Africa, serving the "Golden Triangle" between Cape Town International Airport, OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, and KSIA itself with 7 airlines.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Neighbouring communities are Tongaat to the north-west, Verulam to the south-west, and Umdloti to the south-east.
• In response to the study, ACSA contracted De-Tect Inc.
• It is unclear what the fate of the existing Durban International Airport will be now that KSIA is complete.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.