Nonstop flight route between Stuttgart, Germany and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Stuttgart Airport (STR), Stuttgart, Germany and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 211 miles (or 340 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 relatively short distance between Stuttgart Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Stuttgart Airport (STR):

• For the duration of the Cold War the runway and facilities were shared with the United States Army who operated helicopters, the Grumman OV-1 Mohawk and other fixed wing aircraft at Echterdingen Army Airfield on the southern portion of the facility.
• The furthest airport from Stuttgart Airport (STR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Stuttgart Airport (meaning Stuttgart Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,004 miles (19,319 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Stuttgart Airport (STR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Stuttgart Airport (STR) is Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof (ZWS), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) NNW of STR.
• Stuttgart Airport is an international airport located approximately 13 km in a straight line) south of Stuttgart, Germany.
• In addition to being known as "Stuttgart Airport", another name for STR is "Flughafen Stuttgart".
• The original 1938 terminal was finally replaced in 2004 and there are now four terminals with a maximum capacity of approximately 12 million passengers.

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Component operates seventeen Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft all of which are based on the Boeing 707 airframe Trainer Cargo Aircraft but which have since been retired).
• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E­3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.
• Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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.
• An Economic Impact Study compiled by the NATO E-3A Component shows a 2008 economic impact of 275.8 million euro within a 200-kilometer radius of the base.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.