Nonstop flight route between Van Nuys, California, United States and Herat, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Van Nuys Airport (VNY), Van Nuys, California, United States and Herat International Airport (HEA), Herat, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,709 miles (or 12,407 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 Van Nuys Airport and Herat 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 Van Nuys Airport and Herat 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 Van Nuys Airport (VNY):

• In the last episode of Season 1 of the HBO series Entourage, the final scene takes place at Van Nuys Airport, where Vincent Chase and company take off for New York City.
• Because of Van Nuys Airport's relatively low elevation of 802 feet, planes can take off or land at Van Nuys 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 Van Nuys Airport (VNY) is Whiteman Airport (WHP), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NE of VNY.
• Van Nuys Airport (VNY) has 2 runways.
• Most news helicopters from the Los Angeles area are based at Van Nuys Airport.
• The furthest airport from Van Nuys Airport (VNY) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,472 miles (18,463 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Legend has it that Burbank Airport provided the setting for Humphrey Bogart's famous goodbye in the film Casablanca.

Facts about Herat International Airport (HEA):

• The airport was originally built by engineers from the United States in the late 1950s.
• The furthest airport from Herat International Airport (HEA) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,742 miles (18,897 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Herat International Airport", other names for HEA include "Herat Airport (Herat)" and "Persian: میدان هوایی بین المللی هرات‎".
• The closest airport to Herat International Airport (HEA) is Qala i Naw Airport د قلعه نوهوائی ډګر (LQN), which is located 74 miles (119 kilometers) NE of HEA.
• Herat International Airport (HEA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In May 2005, responsibility was shifted to the International Security Assistance Force, as part of the Stage 2 transition between the U.S.-led coalition and NATO.