Nonstop flight route between Ust-Ilimsk, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ust-Ilimsk (UIK), Ust-Ilimsk, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,744 miles (or 6,025 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 Ust-Ilimsk and RAF Fairford, 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 Ust-Ilimsk and RAF Fairford. 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 Ust-Ilimsk (UIK):

• The closest airport to Ust-Ilimsk (UIK) is Bratsk Airport (BTK), which is located 126 miles (203 kilometers) SSW of UIK.
• Ust-Ilimsk (UIK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Ust-Ilimsk (UIK) is Ushuaia International Airport (USH), which is nearly antipodal to Ust-Ilimsk (meaning Ust-Ilimsk is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ushuaia International Airport), and is located 12,021 miles (19,346 kilometers) away in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.