Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from THU to LRU:
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- About this route
- THU Airport Information
- LRU Airport Information
- Facts about THU
- Facts about LRU
- 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 LRU
- List of Nearest Airports to LRU
- Map of Furthest Airports from LRU
- List of Furthest Airports from LRU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Las Cruces International Airport (LRU), Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,289 miles (or 5,294 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 Las Cruces 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 Las Cruces 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: |
|
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: | LRU / KLRU |
Airport Name: | Las Cruces International Airport |
Location: | Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°17'21"N by 106°55'18"W |
Area Served: | Las Cruces, New Mexico |
Operator/Owner: | City of Las Cruces |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 4457 feet (1,358 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from LRU |
More Information: | LRU Maps & Info |
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- 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 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 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- Thule Air Base is the U.S.
- 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.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
Facts about Las Cruces International Airport (LRU):
- Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) has 3 runways.
- The airport has two fixed base operators, Southwest Aviation and Las Cruces Aero Services.
- The closest airport to Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) is Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) SE of LRU.
- The furthest airport from Las Cruces International Airport (LRU) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,383 miles (18,319 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The airport is used by general aviation, the United States government, New Mexico State University, private charters and the local CAP squadron.
- Because of Las Cruces International Airport's high elevation of 4,457 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at LRU. Combined with a high temperature, this could make LRU a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.