Nonstop flight route between Spangdahlem, Germany and Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM), Spangdahlem, Germany and Gold Coast Airport (OOL), Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,137 miles (or 16,313 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 Gold Coast 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 Gold Coast 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):

• On 25 August 1959, the 10th TRW ended its six-year stay at Spangdahlem and moved to RAF Alconbury, United Kingdom.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Bitburg Airport (BBJ), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of SPM.
• The Air Mobility Command 726th Air Mobility Squadron at Spangdahlem supports cargo and passenger traffic as part of its airlift mission, providing command and control, maintenance and aerial port capability to all AMC aircraft transiting their ramp.
• 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 to being known as "Spangdahlem Air Base", another name for SPM is "Spangdahlem AB".
• 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.
• The wing supports the Supreme Allied Commander Europe with mission-ready personnel and systems providing expeditionary air power.

Facts about Gold Coast Airport (OOL):

• The furthest airport from Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is La Palma Airport (SPC), which is located 11,905 miles (19,159 kilometers) away in La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
• Because of Gold Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Gold Coast 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 closest airport to Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is Ballina Byron Gateway Airport (BNK), which is located 46 miles (75 kilometers) S of OOL.
• Gold Coast Airport handled 5,261,773 passengers last year.
• The airport opened an extension to the main runway as well as a full length parallel taxiway in May 2007.
• In 1990 the airport welcomed its first international charter service from New Zealand, and by 1999 Air New Zealand low-cost subsidiary Freedom Air started scheduled no-frills service from Hamilton, New Zealand with Boeing 737s.
• Gold Coast Airport (OOL) has 2 runways.
• On 26 October 2010 Gold Coast Airport was named the 2010 Major Airport of the Year 2010 by the Australian Airports Association.
• On 22 September 2008 it was announced that Air Pacific will expand its services to Australia with the introduction of twice weekly flights between Nadi, Fiji and the Gold Coast commencing in December 2008.