Nonstop flight route between Spangdahlem, Germany and Aurora, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM), Spangdahlem, Germany and Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ), Aurora, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,295 miles (or 6,913 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 Spangdahlem Air Base and Chicago/Aurora Municipal 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 Spangdahlem Air Base and Chicago/Aurora Municipal 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 Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM):

• In addition to being known as "Spangdahlem Air Base", another name for SPM is "Spangdahlem AB".
• In November 2005, the first C-17 Globemaster III aircraft arrived at Spangdahlem.
• Upon its arrival at Spangdahlem AB, the 10 TRW operated Lockheed RF-80A Shooting Star for daylight aerial recon and the Douglas RB-26C Invader for night recon missions.
• With the departure of the 49 TFW, the 7149th Air Base Group was activated to serve as a caretaker unit for a number of support organizations that remained behind after the departure of the 49 TFW.
• Spangdahlem Air Base is a United States Air Force base located near the small German town of Spangdahlem, approximately 30 km NNE of the city of Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate.
• On 31 December 1971 the 52d Tactical Fighter Wing was transferred without personnel or equipment from Suffolk County AFB, New York to Spangdahlem.
• In addition, Air Mobility Command supports cargo and passenger traffic as part of its airlift mission.
• The furthest airport from Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,986 miles (19,289 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In 1957 the RB-57s and RF-84s were transferred to Chateauroux-Deols Air Depot and the 1st and 38th were re-equipped with the Douglas RB-66 Destroyer.
• The closest airport to Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Bitburg Airport (BBJ), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of SPM.

Facts about Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ):

• The furthest airport from Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,047 miles (17,778 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport is a public airport opened in April 1966, located in the village of Sugar Grove, Illinois, United States, 8 miles west of the city of Aurora, both in Kane County.
• Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ) is DuPage Airport (DPA), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) NE of AUZ.
• Current project planning calls for a parallel grass runway during fiscal years 2010-2012.
• Because of Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 712 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago/Aurora Municipal 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.
• In addition to being known as "Chicago/Aurora Municipal Airport", another name for AUZ is "ARR".