Nonstop flight route between Trincomalee, Sri Lanka and Falkland Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between China Bay Airport (TRR), Trincomalee, Sri Lanka and RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,680 miles (or 13,968 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 China Bay Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant, 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 China Bay Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about China Bay Airport (TRR):

• After independence, the British maintained two military airfields in Ceylon, the Royal Air Force station at RAF Katunayake and the naval base in Trincomalee, and camps at Diyatalawa.
• China Bay Airport (TRR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The base houses the Sri Lanka Air Force Academy.
• Originally built by the British during their Empire colonial times, it was transferred to the Royal Ceylonese Air Force which later became the Sri Lanka Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "China Bay Airport", another name for TRR is "சீனக்குடா விமான நிலையம்චීන වරාය ගුවන්තොටුපළ".
• The closest airport to China Bay Airport (TRR) is Anuradhapura Airport (ACJ), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) WSW of TRR.
• Because of China Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at China Bay 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 China Bay Airport (TRR) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,625 miles (18,709 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.

Facts about RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.
• Mount Pleasant was opened by Prince Andrew on 12 May 1985, becoming fully operational the following year.
• Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.
• A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.