Nonstop flight route between Pituffik, Greenland and Nelson, New Zealand:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from THU to NSN:
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- About this route
- THU Airport Information
- NSN Airport Information
- Facts about THU
- Facts about NSN
- 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 NSN
- List of Nearest Airports to NSN
- Map of Furthest Airports from NSN
- List of Furthest Airports from NSN
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland and Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN), Nelson, New Zealand would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,424 miles (or 15,167 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 Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū, 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 Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū. 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: | NSN / NZNS |
Airport Name: | Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū |
Location: | Nelson, New Zealand |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°17'53"S by 173°13'15"E |
Operator/Owner: | Nelson Airport Limited |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 17 feet (5 meters) |
# of Runways: | 4 |
View all routes: | Routes from NSN |
More Information: | NSN Maps & Info |
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- 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 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.
- Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
- A delegation from NATO's Parliamentary Assembly visited Thule in early September 2010 and were told by the base commander that, at that time, approximately 600 personnel were serving at Thule, a mix of mostly U.S.
- After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over U.S.
- 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.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- 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.
Facts about Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN):
- Sounds Air offer a number of scenic and charter flight services out of Nelson.
- Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū handled 776,448 passengers last year.
- Because of Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū 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 airport has a single terminal building with 9 tarmac gates.
- The furthest airport from Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) is Bragança Airport (BGC), which is nearly antipodal to Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (meaning Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Bragança Airport), and is located 12,398 miles (19,953 kilometers) away in Bragança, Portugal.
- The closest airport to Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) is Motueka Aerodrome (MZP), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NW of NSN.
- Nelson AirportTe Papa Waka Rererangi o Whakatū (NSN) has 4 runways.