Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Kigali, Rwanda:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from THU to KGL:
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- About this route
- THU Airport Information
- KGL Airport Information
- Facts about THU
- Facts about KGL
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to KGL
- List of Nearest Airports to KGL
- Map of Furthest Airports from KGL
- List of Furthest Airports from KGL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Kigali International Airport (KGL), Kigali, Rwanda would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,492 miles (or 10,448 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 Kigali 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 Kigali International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | KGL / HRYR |
| Airport Name: | Kigali International Airport |
| Location: | Kigali, Rwanda |
| GPS Coordinates: | 1°57'59"S by 30°7'59"E |
| Area Served: | Kigali |
| Operator/Owner: | Rwanda Airports Authority |
| Airport Type: | Civil aviation airport |
| Elevation: | 4891 feet (1,491 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from KGL |
| More Information: | KGL Maps & Info |
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
- Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
- In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
- 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.
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- There is only a brief period each year in the summer when sea ice thins sufficiently to send supply ships to the base.
- 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 also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
Facts about Kigali International Airport (KGL):
- Kigali International Airport (KGL) currently has only 1 runway.
- There are plans to replace the current airport with a new one located south of Kigali on the south side of the Nyabarongo River in Bugesera.
- Kigali International Airport, formerly known as Gregoire Kayibanda International Airport, but sometimes referred to as Kanombe International Airport, is the primary airport serving Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
- The closest airport to Kigali International Airport (KGL) is Kirundo Airport (KRE), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) S of KGL.
- Because of Kigali International Airport's high elevation of 4,891 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at KGL. Combined with a high temperature, this could make KGL a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The furthest airport from Kigali International Airport (KGL) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,920 miles (19,183 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
- This the former passenger terminal
