Nonstop flight route between Tanana, Alaska, United States and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport (TAL), Tanana, Alaska, United States and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,210 miles (or 6,775 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 Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport (TAL):

• Because of Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport's relatively low elevation of 236 feet, planes can take off or land at Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial 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.
• Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport (TAL) currently has only 1 runway.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 3,549 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 3,298 enplanements in 2009, and 3,241 in 2010.
• The furthest airport from Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport (TAL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,280 miles (16,544 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Ralph M. Calhoun Memorial Airport (TAL) is Manley Hot Springs Airport (MLY), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) ESE of TAL.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.