Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Guangyuan, Sichuan, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Guangyuan Airport (GYS), Guangyuan, Sichuan, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,907 miles (or 7,897 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 Guangyuan 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 Guangyuan 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):

• A delegation from NATO's Parliamentary Assembly visited Thule in early September 2010 and were told by the base commander that, at that time, approximately 600 personnel were serving at Thule, a mix of mostly U.S.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag Dannebrog must be side by side with Stars and Stripes on the base.
• In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• 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.
• 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.
• Thule Air Base is home to the 21st Space Wing's global network of sensors providing missile warning, space surveillance and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.

Facts about Guangyuan Airport (GYS):

• The closest airport to Guangyuan Airport (GYS) is Mianyang Nanjiao Airport (MIG), which is located 87 miles (140 kilometers) SW of GYS.
• In addition to being known as "Guangyuan Airport", other names for GYS include "广元机场" and "Guǎngyuán Jīchǎng".
• Because of Guangyuan Airport's high elevation of 14,472 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GYS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GYS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Guangyuan Airport (GYS) is Viña del Mar Airport (KNA), which is nearly antipodal to Guangyuan Airport (meaning Guangyuan Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Viña del Mar Airport), and is located 12,268 miles (19,744 kilometers) away in Viña del Mar, Chile.