Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Esmeraldas, Ecuador:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (ESM), Esmeraldas, Ecuador would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,237 miles (or 8,429 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 Thule Air Base and Carlos Concha Torres 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 Thule Air Base and Carlos Concha Torres 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 Thule Air Base (THU):

• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
• Thule Air Base has served as the regional hub for nearby installations, including Cape Atholl, Camp Century, Camp TUTO, Sites 1 and 2, P-Mountain, J-Site, North and South Mountains, and a research rocket firing site.
• There is only a brief period each year in the summer when sea ice thins sufficiently to send supply ships to the base.
• Originally established as a Strategic Air Command installation, Thule would periodically serve as a dispersal base for B-36 Peacemaker and B-47 Stratojet aircraft during the 1950s, as well as providing an ideal site to test the operability and maintainability of these weapon systems in extreme cold weather.
• Thule Air Base is the U.S.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.

Facts about Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (ESM):

• The closest airport to Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (ESM) is Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO), which is located 116 miles (186 kilometers) SE of ESM.
• Because of Carlos Concha Torres International Airport's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Carlos Concha Torres 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.
• The furthest airport from Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (ESM) is Minangkabau International Airport (MIA) (PDG), which is nearly antipodal to Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (meaning Carlos Concha Torres International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Minangkabau International Airport (MIA)), and is located 12,422 miles (19,991 kilometers) away in Ketaping, West Sumatra, Indonesia.
• Carlos Concha Torres International Airport (ESM) currently has only 1 runway.