Nonstop flight route between Valledupar, Colombia and Tripoli, Libya:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (VUP), Valledupar, Colombia and Mitiga International Airport (MJI), Tripoli, Libya would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,629 miles (or 9,059 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 Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport and Mitiga 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 Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport and Mitiga 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 Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (VUP):

• Because of Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport's relatively low elevation of 456 feet, planes can take off or land at Alfonso López Pumarejo 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.
• Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (VUP) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (VUP) is Christmas Island Airport (XCH), which is nearly antipodal to Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (meaning Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Christmas Island Airport), and is located 12,365 miles (19,899 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Australia.
• The closest airport to Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport (VUP) is La Mina Airport Jorge Isaacs Airport (MCJ), which is located 75 miles (121 kilometers) NE of VUP.
• In addition to being known as "Alfonso López Pumarejo Airport", another name for VUP is "Aeropuerto Alfonso López Pumarejo".

Facts about Mitiga International Airport (MJI):

• The 48 TFW had practiced for years at Wheelus with F-100s and later at Zaragoza AB Spain with F-4D Phantoms and the F-111s for just such a mission.
• Mitiga International Airport (MJI) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Mitiga International Airport (MJI) is Tripoli International Airport (TIP), which is located only 18 miles (28 kilometers) SSW of MJI.
• The furthest airport from Mitiga International Airport (MJI) is Rarotonga International Airport (RAR), which is located 11,524 miles (18,546 kilometers) away in Avarua, Cook Islands.
• On 21 August 2011, rebels launched an assault on Mitiga as part of a bid to battle loyalist forces in Tripoli, sustaining a number of casualties in the process
• The airport was originally built in 1923 and served as Mellaha Air Base for the Italian Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Mitiga International Airport", another name for MJI is "مطار امعيتيقة الدولي".
• After 1970, the facility was known as Okba Ben Nafi Air Base, a Libyan People's Air Force installation.
• Because of Mitiga International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Mitiga 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.
• On 13 March 2011, Ali Atiyya, a colonel of the Libyan Air Force at the airport, defected and joined the anti-Gaddafi forces.