Nonstop flight route between Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and Hulhulé Island, Maldives:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL), Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (MLE), Hulhulé Island, Maldives would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,913 miles (or 14,343 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 Wallops Flight Facility Airport and Ibrahim Nasir 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 Wallops Flight Facility Airport and Ibrahim Nasir 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 Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL):

• Because of Wallops Flight Facility Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wallops Flight Facility 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.
• Since 2001, engineers at NASA Wallops Flight Facility have been developing new range technologies, systems and approaches to improve the cost and responsiveness of launch and flight test activities, within the constraints of available funding and program schedules.
• On September 6, 2013, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer was launched from Wallops, atop a Minotaur V rocket.
• The furthest airport from Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,785 miles (18,965 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 1959, NASA acquired the former Naval Air Station Chincoteague, and engineering and administrative activities were moved to this location.
• LCT2 is an effort to produce a relatively low-cost transceiver to allow launch vehicles to communicate through NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System after they have gone over the horizon from the launch site.
• The first payload launched into orbit from Wallops Island was Explorer IX, atop a Scout rocket, on February 15, 1961.
• The closest airport to Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Accomack County Airport (MFV), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SW of WAL.

Facts about Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (MLE):

• The closest airport to Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (MLE) is Villa International Airport (VAM), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) SW of MLE.
• 1Some of these flights make an intermediate stop in Colombo, but Turkish Airlines does not have traffic rights solely between Male and Colombo.
• In addition to being known as "Ibrahim Nasir International Airport", another name for MLE is "އިބްރާހިމް ނާސިރު ބައިނަލްއަޤުވާމީ ވައިގެބަނދަރު".
• In late 2012, the government of Maldives declared that the concession agreement was void ab initio and on 27 November 2012 gave GMIAL a deadline of 7 days to evict the airport'.
• The furthest airport from Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (MLE) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,289 miles (18,168 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• When the tourism industry in the Maldives began in 1972, the country was in need of an international standard airport to transport tourists to the resort islands.
• Because of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Ibrahim Nasir 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.
• MACL continued to own the Male' International Airport and manage some of the other airports in Maldives.
• Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (MLE) currently has only 1 runway.