Nonstop flight route between Grottaglie, Puglia, Italy and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR), Grottaglie, Puglia, Italy and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,460 miles (or 7,178 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport and Bandaranaike International 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport and Bandaranaike International 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR):

• The furthest airport from Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,692 miles (18,817 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport resides at an elevation of 215 feet above mean sea level.
• Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) currently has only 1 runway.
• During World War II, Grottaglie Airfield was a military airfield used by the United States Army Air Forces.
• In addition to being known as "Taranto-Grottaglie Airport", other names for TAR include "Aeroporto di Taranto-Grottaglie" and "Taranto Grottaglie".
• The closest airport to Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) is Brindisi – Salento Airport (BDS), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) ENE of TAR.
• Because of Taranto-Grottaglie Airport's relatively low elevation of 215 feet, planes can take off or land at Taranto-Grottaglie 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.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park.
• The furthest airport from Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,614 miles (18,691 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• Because of Bandaranaike International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bandaranaike International 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 "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.
• Terminal 2 is planned to open in 2016, a section of the terminal is to be opened for the passengers by end 2015.It would be the newest and most modern terminal at the airport.
• In 1957 it closed as the British left the island, and SWRD Bandaranaike removed all the British Military airfields from Ceylon, the airfield was handed over to the Royal Ceylon Air Force and renamed Katunayake.
• On 7 November 1971 the first Boeing 747 landing took place, the Boeing 747-200B was operated by Condor was carrying German tourists from Frankfurt.
• As part of the airport development program, a passenger train service was launched between the Airport and Colombo Secretariat Station, in June 2010.
• The closest airport to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Ratmalana Airport (RML), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) S of CMB.
• Bandaranaike International Airport handled 7,328,798 passengers last year.
• On 7 May 2007 the Sri Lankan Government decided to shift some military aviation operations out of the space adjoining the airport to SLAF Hingurakgoda, thus paving the way for more civilian operations.