Nonstop flight route between Dakhla, Western Sahara and Beijing, People's Republic of China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Dakhla Airport (VIL), Dakhla, Western Sahara and Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,074 miles (or 11,384 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 Dakhla Airport and Beijing Capital International Airport, 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 Dakhla Airport and Beijing Capital International Airport. 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 Dakhla Airport (VIL):

• The airport is operated by the Moroccan state-owned company ONDA.
• The passenger terminal covers 670 square metres and is capable to handle up to 55,000 passengers per year.
• Dakhla Airport (VIL) currently has only 1 runway.
• Dakhla Airport handled 4,206 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Dakhla Airport (VIL) is Nouadhibou International Airport (NDB), which is located 205 miles (330 kilometers) SSW of VIL.
• The furthest airport from Dakhla Airport (VIL) is Tontouta International Airport (NOU), which is nearly antipodal to Dakhla Airport (meaning Dakhla Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tontouta International Airport), and is located 12,256 miles (19,725 kilometers) away in Noumea, New Caledonia.
• Because of Dakhla Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Dakhla 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.
• In addition to being known as "Dakhla Airport", another name for VIL is "GMMH/GSVO".

Facts about Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK):

• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Beijing Capital International Airport", other names for PEK include "北京首都国际机场" and "Běijīng Shǒudū Guójì Jīchǎng".
• The closest airport to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SSW of PEK.
• A third runway of BCIA opened on 29 October 2007, to relieve congestion on the other two runways.
• Terminal 1, with 60,000 m2 of space, opened on 1 January 1980, and replaced the smaller existing terminal which was in operation since 1958.
• On 20 July 2013, a man in a wheelchair detonated small homemade explosives which exploded on Terminal 3 in the Beijing International Airport.
• A 98.3 m monitoring tower stands at the southern end of T3, the highest building at the airport.
• The furthest airport from Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport (VDM), which is nearly antipodal to Beijing Capital International Airport (meaning Beijing Capital International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport), and is located 12,378 miles (19,920 kilometers) away in Viedma, Argentina.
• Because of Beijing Capital International Airport's relatively low elevation of 116 feet, planes can take off or land at Beijing Capital International 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.
• To accommodate the growing traffic volume, Beijing Capital added the enormous Terminal 3 in 2008 in time for the Olympic Games, the second largest airport terminal in the world after Dubai International Airport's Terminal 3, and the sixth largest building in the world by area.
• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• Beijing Capital International Airport is the main hub for Air China, the flag carrier of the People's Republic of China, which flies to around 120 destinations from Beijing.
• The terminal has gates and a nearby runway that can handle the Airbus A380, which were proven when Singapore Airlines briefly offered A380 flights to Beijing in August 2008 during the Summer Olympics.