Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991):

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Pulkovo Airport (LED), Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,397 miles (or 3,857 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 Pulkovo 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 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
• 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.
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• Late 1950s the DEW 1 to 4 where build as "weather stations", Thule Air Base would act as an supply station for the DYE bases.
• Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
• 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 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.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• 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 Pulkovo Airport (LED):

• In February 1948, after the damage was completely repaired, the airport resumed scheduled passenger flights.
• The closest airport to Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Rzhevka Airport (RVH), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NE of LED.
• In the near term, Pulkovo strategically focuses on its master plan until 2025 that calls for massive modernization of the entire airport infrastructure.
• Because of Pulkovo Airport's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Pulkovo 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.
• In addition to being known as "Pulkovo Airport", another name for LED is "Аэропо́рт Пу́лково".
• The furthest airport from Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,868 miles (17,491 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Pulkovo Airport (LED) has 2 runways.
• Pulkovo Airport handled 12,854,366 passengers last year.