Nonstop flight route between Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB), Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,049 miles (or 6,515 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 Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB):

• Because of Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport's relatively low elevation of 170 feet, planes can take off or land at Robert L. Bradshaw 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.
• Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB) is Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SE of SKB.
• On 26 September 2009, British Airways Flight 2156 to V.
• The furthest airport from Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB) is Port Hedland International Airport (PHE), which is nearly antipodal to Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (meaning Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Port Hedland International Airport), and is located 12,207 miles (19,646 kilometers) away in Port Hedland, Western Australia, Australia.
• The largest aircraft now operating regularly scheduled service at SKB is the Boeing 777-200 from British Airways.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.