Nonstop flight route between Waterford, Ireland and Beijing, People's Republic of China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Waterford Airport (WAT), Waterford, Ireland and Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,224 miles (or 8,407 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 Waterford 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 Waterford 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 Waterford Airport (WAT):

• Because of Waterford Airport's relatively low elevation of 119 feet, planes can take off or land at Waterford 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 14 May 2007 Aer Arann announced that they would open up a base in Waterford Airport and they also announced services to Birmingham.
• The airport is on the R708 road which can be accessed from the R710 outer ring road in Waterford.
• On 14 March 2012, Aer Arann transferred all of its Waterford routes into the Aer Lingus Regional brand effective from 25 March 2012.
• Waterford Airport handled 8,000 passengers last year.
• Waterford Airport has four check-in desks, an information desk, two boarding gates and two baggage carousels.
• Airport development was initiated by Waterford Corporation with support from the Government of Ireland and the private sector in 1979–1980.
• In addition to being known as "Waterford Airport", another name for WAT is "Aerfort Phort Láirge".
• The furthest airport from Waterford Airport (WAT) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Waterford Airport (meaning Waterford Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,013 miles (19,333 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Waterford Airport (WAT) is Kilkenny Airport (KKY), which is located 33 miles (53 kilometers) NNW of WAT.
• On 12 May 2010 Aer Arann announced an expansion of services from Waterford to London and Galway.

Facts about Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK):

• 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.
• The T3 food-service area is called a "global kitchen," where 72 stores provide food ranging from formal dishes to fast food, from Chinese to western, from bakery goods to ice cream.
• Terminal 2 opened on 1 November 1999, with a floor area of 336,000 m2.
• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• 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.
• Due to limited capacity at Beijing Capital International Airport, a new airport in Daxing is being planned which BCIA will be only served its domestic flights.
• On 20 July 2013, a man in a wheelchair detonated small homemade explosives which exploded on Terminal 3 in the Beijing International Airport.
• 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.