Nonstop flight route between Vadsø, Finnmark, Norway and Altus, Oklahoma, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Vadsø Airport (VDS), Vadsø, Finnmark, Norway and Altus Air Force Base (LTS), Altus, Oklahoma, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,770 miles (or 7,676 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 Vadsø Airport and Altus Air Force Base, 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 Vadsø Airport and Altus Air Force Base. 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 Vadsø Airport (VDS):

• Vadsø Airport handled 81,772 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Vadsø Airport", another name for VDS is "Vadsø lufthavn".
• Both Widerøe and Norving applied to operate the Finnmark route, which would connect the airports together and to the primary airports in Finnmark and Tromsø Airport.
• The first seaplane route to Vadsø was started by Widerøe in 1938, which flew along the coast south to Trondheim.
• Because of Vadsø Airport's relatively low elevation of 127 feet, planes can take off or land at Vadsø 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.
• On 4 January 1984 a Cessna aircraft crashed into the sea after take-off from the airport.
• The closest airport to Vadsø Airport (VDS) is Kirkenes Airport, Høybuktmoen (KKN), which is located 24 miles (38 kilometers) S of VDS.
• Vadsø was during the late 1930s and from the mid-1940s served with a seaplane route operated by Widerøe and Norwegian Air Lines.
• The furthest airport from Vadsø Airport (VDS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,407 miles (16,748 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Altus Air Force Base (LTS):

• In addition to being known as "Altus Air Force Base", another name for LTS is "Altus AFB".
• The closest airport to Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Altus/Quartz Mountain Regional Airport (AXS), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WNW of LTS.
• The 577th Strategic Missile Squadron operated twelve missile sites, of one missile at each site.
• In 1967, the Air Force began searching for a base that could handle the training for its strategic airlift fleet, the C-141 Starlifter and its newest and largest transport aircraft, the C-5 Galaxy.
• Altus AFB supports about 2,000 permanent military personnel.
• In August 1966, the 4th Mobile Communications Group transferred from Hunter AFB, Georgia to Altus.
• The furthest airport from Altus Air Force Base (LTS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,958 miles (17,635 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.