Nonstop flight route between Spencer, Iowa, United States and Alta, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW), Spencer, Iowa, United States and Alta Airport (ALF), Alta, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,038 miles (or 6,499 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 Spencer Municipal Airport and Alta 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 Spencer Municipal Airport and Alta 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 Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW):

• In addition to being known as "Spencer Municipal Airport", another name for SPW is "Northwest Iowa Regional AirportSpencer Army Airfield".
• The closest airport to Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW) is Jackson Municipal Airport (MJQ), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of SPW.
• The airport is not served by any commercial airlines at this time but it was once the home of Great Lakes Airlines.
• The furthest airport from Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,691 miles (17,206 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Opened in March, 1942.
• Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW) has 2 runways.

Facts about Alta Airport (ALF):

• Alta Airport is an international airport serving Alta, a town and municipality in Finnmark county, Norway.
• Because of Alta Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Alta 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 Alta Airport (ALF) is Lakselv Airport, Banak (LKL), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of ALF.
• Plans for expanding the 1,670-square-meter terminal facilities were first articulated by the Civil Airport Administration in the 1990s.
• In addition to being known as "Alta Airport", another name for ALF is "Alta lufthavn".
• Alta Airport handled 353,051 passengers last year.
• Construction started in February 1962 and cost NOK 3.2 million.
• The airport is located at Elvebakken and Altagård, on the southern shore of the Altafjord and at the mouth of the river of Altaelva, which is about 4 kilometers east of Bossekop in the town of Alta.
• Local politicians started discussing the airfield plans again in the mid-1950s, and an airport for Alta was included in the national airport plan launched in 1956.
• Activity at Alta Airport peaked in the following years.
• The first airport in Alta was built by the Wehrmacht during the German occupation of Norway.
• The furthest airport from Alta Airport (ALF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,502 miles (16,901 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• A proposal by a consultant company, ordered by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in 2011, suggested that starting in 2013 the subsidized routes in Finnmark should follow a coastal route, leaving those to Kirkenes and the county capital of Vadsø as the only subsidized routes remaining at Alta.
• Alta Airport (ALF) currently has only 1 runway.