Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Kwethluk, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Kwethluk Airport (KWT), Kwethluk, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,245 miles (or 3,614 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 relatively short distance between Thule Air Base and Kwethluk Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
• In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
• Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.

Facts about Kwethluk Airport (KWT):

• The closest airport to Kwethluk Airport (KWT) is Bethel Seaplane Base (JBT), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) W of KWT.
• Because of Kwethluk Airport's relatively low elevation of 30 feet, planes can take off or land at Kwethluk 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 Kwethluk Airport (KWT) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,584 miles (17,033 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• Kwethluk Airport (KWT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport was relocated from its former site at coordinates 60°48.26′N 161°26.72′W / 60.80433°N 161.44533°W / 60.80433.
• Kwethluk Airport has one gravel surfaced runway measuring 3,198 by 75 ft.