Nonstop flight route between Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Essex (near London), England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL), Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and London Stansted Airport (STN), Essex (near London), England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,554 miles (or 16,984 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and London Stansted 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and London Stansted 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 Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL):

• As early as the 1920s, aviators had used fields in the Albion Park area for joy flights and demonstrations.
• In addition to being known as "Illawarra Regional Airport", another name for WOL is "Wollongong Airport".
• Because of Illawarra Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 31 feet, planes can take off or land at Illawarra Regional 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.
• Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Horta International Airport (HOR), which is nearly antipodal to Illawarra Regional Airport (meaning Illawarra Regional Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Horta International Airport), and is located 12,162 miles (19,573 kilometers) away in Horta, Azores, Portugal.
• Following the war, Trans Australia Airlines and Australian National Airways linked the airport with Canberra and Melbourne until 1950.
• The closest airport to Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Camden Aerodrome (CDU), which is located 36 miles (59 kilometers) N of WOL.
• In 1990, the first master plan was prepared for the Illawarra Regional Airport, providing a framework for future management and developments when Shellharbour City Council assumed full responsibility for the operation of the airport.
• There is no control tower located at the airport and pilots must co-ordinate arrivals and departures using a Common Traffic Advisory Frequency, aided by an Aerodrome Frequency Response Unit, which notifies pilots that their transmissions have been received on the frequency and activates lighting systems as appropriate.

Facts about London Stansted Airport (STN):

• London Stansted Airport handled 17,852,393 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to London Stansted Airport (STN) is MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) ENE of STN.
• Stansted is the newest passenger airport of all the main London airports.
• The furthest airport from London Stansted Airport (STN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,858 miles (19,084 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• London Stansted Airport (STN) currently has only 1 runway.
• A major expansion programme to the existing terminal took place between 2007 and 2009, adding nearly 5,900 m2 of floorspace to give space for additional baggage carousels, a new immigration and passport control hall and a hypostyle arrivals hall with improved facilities.
• After the withdrawal of the Americans on 12 August 1945, Stansted was taken over by the Air Ministry and used by No.
• Long-haul scheduled services commenced in the early 1990s when American Airlines operated a transatlantic service between Stansted and Chicago, however the route was unprofitable and was withdrawn in 1993.Continental Airlines also operated services in the late 1990s from Newark, but this service was stopped shortly after the 11 September 2001 attacks.
• Because of London Stansted Airport's relatively low elevation of 348 feet, planes can take off or land at London Stansted 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.