Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from THU to MDY:
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- About this route
- THU Airport Information
- MDY Airport Information
- Facts about THU
- Facts about MDY
- 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 MDY
- List of Nearest Airports to MDY
- Map of Furthest Airports from MDY
- List of Furthest Airports from MDY
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Henderson Field (MDY), Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,616 miles (or 7,429 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 Henderson Field, 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 Henderson Field. 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: | MDY / PMDY |
Airport Name: | Henderson Field |
Location: | Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 28°12'5"N by 177°22'53"W |
Area Served: | Midway Atoll |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Dept. of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 18 feet (5 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MDY |
More Information: | MDY Maps & Info |
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from 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.
- Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
- 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.
- Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
- Thule Air Base is the U.S.
Facts about Henderson Field (MDY):
- Henderson Field is an uncontrolled airport.
- Henderson Field was named after Major Lofton R.
- The airfield was previously served by Aloha Airlines with scheduled weekly charter flghts to and from Honolulu utilizing a Boeing 737-200 jetliner.
- Henderson Field (MDY) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Henderson Field (MDY) is Johnston Atoll Airport (JON), which is located 937 miles (1,508 kilometers) SE of MDY.
- Because of Henderson Field's relatively low elevation of 18 feet, planes can take off or land at Henderson Field 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 Henderson Field (MDY) is Lüderitz Airport (LUD), which is located 11,656 miles (18,759 kilometers) away in Luderitz, Namibia.