Nonstop flight route between Wellington, New Zealand and Watertown, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wellington International Airport (WLG), Wellington, New Zealand and Watertown Regional Airport (ATY), Watertown, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,058 miles (or 12,967 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 Wellington International Airport and Watertown Regional 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 Wellington International Airport and Watertown Regional 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 Wellington International Airport (WLG):

• At 2,081 metres, Wellington's runway is shorter than some New Zealand domestic airport runways.
• As recently as 1992, several alternate sites for Wellington Airport were considered – Te Horo, Paraparaumu, Mana Island, Ohariu Valley, Horokiwi, Wairarapa and Pencarrow – but a decision was made to upgrade the existing site at Rongotai.
• Wellington International Airport (WLG) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Wellington International Airport's relatively low elevation of 42 feet, planes can take off or land at Wellington 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.
• In April 2009, the airport issued a new master plan outlining upgrade plans over the next 20 years, including expanded terminal and apron space, and scope for runway extensions.
• The closest airport to Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) NNE of WLG.
• The furthest airport from Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Wellington International Airport (meaning Wellington International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,406 miles (19,966 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
• The length of the runway has limited the size of aircraft that can use the airport on a commercial basis, and overseas destinations are limited to the east coast of Australia and the South Pacific.
• In April 2006, Air New Zealand and Qantas announced that they proposed to enter into a codeshare agreement, arguing that it would be necessary in order to reduce empty seats and financial losses on trans-Tasman routes.
• In 1991, the airport released plans to widen the taxiway to CAA Code D & E specifications and acquire extra space, which were abandoned after protests from local residents.
• Wellington is the third busiest airport in New Zealand handling a total of 5,373,622 passengers in the year ending 31 March 2013.

Facts about Watertown Regional Airport (ATY):

• The closest airport to Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) is Brookings Regional Airport (BKX), which is located 45 miles (73 kilometers) SSE of ATY.
• Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) has 2 runways.
• Watertown Regional Airport is a city owned, public airport two miles northwest of Watertown, in Codington County, South Dakota.
• The furthest airport from Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,571 miles (17,013 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In addition to being known as "Watertown Regional Airport", another name for ATY is "Watertown Army Airfield".
• B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator units underwent advanced training before going overseas.