Nonstop flight route between Tangshan, Hebei, China and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Tangshan Sannühe Airport (TVS), Tangshan, Hebei, China and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,948 miles (or 7,964 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 Tangshan Sannühe Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, 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 Tangshan Sannühe Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component. 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 Tangshan Sannühe Airport (TVS):

• In addition to being known as "Tangshan Sannühe Airport", other names for TVS include "唐山三女河机场", "Tángshān Sānnǚhé Jīchǎng" and "ZBTS".
• Tangshan Sannühe Airport handled 109,000 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Tangshan Sannühe Airport (TVS) is Comandante Espora Airport (BHI), which is nearly antipodal to Tangshan Sannühe Airport (meaning Tangshan Sannühe Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Comandante Espora Airport), and is located 12,367 miles (19,903 kilometers) away in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Tangshan Sannühe Airport (TVS) is Tianjin Binhai International Airport (TSN), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) SW of TVS.

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
• Surrounded by farmland and a natural woodland reserve, the base was originally built by the Royal Air Force after World War II and operated as RAF Geilenkirchen from 1953 onwards.
• The E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located near Geilenkirchen, Germany.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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 fleet of E-3's has remained in operation since the Cold War and has adapted its mission to emerging security threats, primarily in European airspace.
• Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
• The E-3A Component directly employs more than 3,000 personnel at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen and therefore has a significant economic impact in the surrounding communities.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.