Nonstop flight route between Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan and Sofia, Bulgaria:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kobe Airport (UKB), Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan and Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna (SOF), Sofia, Bulgaria would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,580 miles (or 8,980 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 Kobe Airport and Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna, 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 Kobe Airport and Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna. 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 Kobe Airport (UKB):

• The airport finally opened on February 16, 2006, with Japan Airlines operating the first flight and All Nippon Airways operating the first scheduled flight.
• In addition to being known as "Kobe Airport", other names for UKB include "神戸空港" and "Kōbe Kūkō".
• Kobe Airport (UKB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Kobe Airport (UKB) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,976 miles (19,273 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Because of Kobe Airport's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at Kobe 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 closest airport to Kobe Airport (UKB) is Kansai International Airport (KIX), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) S of UKB.
• Kobe Airport is connected to Kansai Airport by the Kobe-Kanku Bay Shuttle, a high speed ferry which completes the airport-to-airport journey in 29 minutes for ¥1,500.
• In 2013, Kobe mayor Tatsuo Yada endorsed a proposal to consolidate the management of the three Kansai region airports by adding Kobe Airport to the planned sale in 2014 of operating concessions at Itami and Kansai, although the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported this to be unlikely given the advanced state of negotiations surrounding the concessions.

Facts about Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna (SOF):

• The closest airport to Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna (SOF) is Plovdiv Airport (PDV), which is located 86 miles (138 kilometers) ESE of SOF.
• According to the plan a new Sofia airport terminal was built to the east of the old terminal and a second runway was constructed alongside the existing one.
• In 2004 Strabag demanded an additional 6 million euro due to rising steel prices.
• In addition to being known as "Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna", other names for SOF include "Vrazhdebna Airport" and "Летище София".
• Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna handled 350,432 passengers last year.
• Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna (SOF) currently has only 1 runway.
• The new tower was officially opened on 7 December 2012.
• In mid-2012 the airport will have one of the most modern and most beautiful airport towers in Europe.
• The furthest airport from Sofia Airport Vrazhdebna (SOF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,437 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.