Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Lanseria, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Lanseria International Airport (HLA), Lanseria, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,064 miles (or 12,978 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 Lanseria 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 Lanseria 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):

• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
• 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.
• 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.
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• 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 addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.

Facts about Lanseria International Airport (HLA):

• Various maintenance and avionics companies are situated on the airport including Interjet Maintenance, Exucujet, Lanseria Jet centre and NAC with various other smaller outfits.
• The closest airport to Lanseria International Airport (HLA) is Grand Central Airport (GCJ), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) ESE of HLA.
• Lanseria International Airport (HLA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Lanseria International Airport's high elevation of 4,520 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at HLA. Combined with a high temperature, this could make HLA a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Lanseria International Airport (HLA) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is nearly antipodal to Lanseria International Airport (meaning Lanseria International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Hana Airport), and is located 12,002 miles (19,316 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• In addition to being known as "Lanseria International Airport", another name for HLA is "Lanseria".
• When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990 he was flown to Johannesburg landing at Lanseria Airport.