Nonstop flight route between Skien, Telemark, Norway and Wallops Island, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Skien Airport, Geiteryggen (SKE), Skien, Telemark, Norway and Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL), Wallops Island, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,851 miles (or 6,197 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 Skien Airport, Geiteryggen and Wallops Flight Facility Airport, 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 Skien Airport, Geiteryggen and Wallops Flight Facility Airport. 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 Skien Airport, Geiteryggen (SKE):

• Skien Airport, Geiteryggen handled 46,995 passengers last year.
• Because of Skien Airport, Geiteryggen's relatively low elevation of 463 feet, planes can take off or land at Skien Airport, Geiteryggen 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.
• Following an initiative from the municipality, the Kirkenes-based airline Norving announced in January 1975 their intention to operate between Geiteryggen and Oslo and establish a base at Geiteryggen.
• In addition to being known as "Skien Airport, Geiteryggen", another name for SKE is "Skien lufthavn, Geiteryggen".
• The furthest airport from Skien Airport, Geiteryggen (SKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,344 miles (18,257 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Vildanden terminated its agreement with Aviatrans in April 2009, with the intention of using larger aircraft.
• The runway and original facilities at Geiteryggen were built by the aviation club and cost 30,000 Norwegian krone.
• The domestic aviation market was deregulated in 1994 and Teddy Air stated competing with Air Stord on the Bergen route.
• The closest airport to Skien Airport, Geiteryggen (SKE) is Sandefjord Airport, Torp (TRF), which is located 24 miles (39 kilometers) E of SKE.
• Norving's concession was granted in January 1976 and was the first time a formal taxi route concession was granted in Norway.
• Teddy Air was established in 1989 and began services from Skien to Fornebu the following year, initially using a Britten-Norman Islander.

Facts about Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL):

• The closest airport to Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Accomack County Airport (MFV), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SW of WAL.
• Because of Wallops Flight Facility Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wallops Flight Facility 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 Wallops mobile range instrumentation includes telemetry, radar, command and power systems.
• There have been over 16,000 launches from the rocket testing range at Wallops since its founding in 1945 in the quest for information on the flight characteristics of airplanes, launch vehicles, and spacecraft, and to increase the knowledge of the Earth's upper atmosphere and the environment of outer space.
• The furthest airport from Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,785 miles (18,965 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The first payload launched into orbit from Wallops Island was Explorer IX, atop a Scout rocket, on February 15, 1961.
• In 1998, the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority, later joined by Maryland, built the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops on land leased from NASA.