Nonstop flight route between San Antonio, Texas, United States and Rhine, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio (SKF), San Antonio, Texas, United States and Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ), Rhine, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,252 miles (or 8,453 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 Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio and Rheine-Bentlage Air Base, 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 Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio and Rheine-Bentlage Air Base. 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 Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio (SKF):

• In winter of 2009 it was decided to combine all the military bases in San Antonio into one large base named Joint Base San Antonio.
• In October 2008 the BMT was expanded an extra two weeks to implement more air base defense training as well as other rudimentary skills.
• The closest airport to Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio (SKF) is Stinson Municipal Airport (SSF), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) ESE of SKF.
• The furthest airport from Lackland Air Force Base Joint Base San Antonio (SKF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,124 miles (17,902 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In late 1951 Air Defense Command selected Lackland Air Force Base as one of twenty-eight radar stations built as part of the second segment of the permanent radar surveillance network.
• In 1965 AN/FPS-20A was upgraded to an AN/FPS-91A radar, then in 1969 it was modified to an AN/FPS-66A.

Facts about Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ):

• Since 1960 various units of the German Army Aviation Corps have been stationed at Rheine Air Base.
• In addition to being known as "Rheine-Bentlage Air Base", another name for ZPQ is "(Advanced Landing Ground B-108)".
• Because of Rheine-Bentlage Air Base's relatively low elevation of 128 feet, planes can take off or land at Rheine-Bentlage Air Base 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.
• Since then helicopters from Rheine saw action in as different places as Italy, Greece and the Pyrenees mainly by offering help and logistic support after natural disasters.
• The closest airport to Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ) is Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) SE of ZPQ.
• Since unification of Germany in 1990, units from Rheine were deployed in as various part as the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan under the auspices of either NATO, the UN or the EU.
• Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 2004, after a further restructuring of the Bundeswehr, during which a large number of bases were closed, Army Aviation Medium Transport Regiment 15 was given the honorary name Münsterland, this being the result of the German Army's continuing commitment to the base at the time.
• The furthest airport from Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,825 miles (19,030 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.