Nonstop flight route between Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Hampton, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Langley Field (LFI), Hampton, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,558 miles (or 12,164 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Langley Field, 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Langley Field. 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU):

• Until August 2006, Peau Vavaʻu used a DC-3 on their domestic routes, but this has recently been replaced with a Jetstream 41.
• It is the strength of the runway rather than the length that restricts operations from Fuaʻamotu.
• The furthest airport from Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (TMR), which is nearly antipodal to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (meaning Fuaʻamotu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Tamanrasset, Algeria.
• Because of Fuaʻamotu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Fuaʻamotu 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.
• Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Lifuka Island Airport (HPA), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NNE of TBU.

Facts about Langley Field (LFI):

• Because of the possibility of crashes of the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptors stationed at the base, the city of Hampton is attempting to buy up privately owned property via eminent domain to create a safety buffer zone around the base.
• In 1917, the new proving ground was designated Langley Field for one of America's early air pioneers, Samuel Pierpont Langley.
• The closest airport to Langley Field (LFI) is Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) WNW of LFI.
• The furthest airport from Langley Field (LFI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,757 miles (18,921 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• General Headquarters, Air Force
• Langley Air Force Base was severely damaged by flooding due to the storm surge from Hurricane Isabel in September 2003 and again during the November 2009 Mid-Atlantic nor'easter.
• Langley Field was named after Samuel Pierpoint Langley, an aerodynamic pioneer and a former Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.