Nonstop flight route between Whangarei, New Zealand and Kandahar, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Whangarei Airport (WRE), Whangarei, New Zealand and Kabul International Airport (KDH), Kandahar, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,407 miles (or 13,530 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 Whangarei Airport and Kabul 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 Whangarei Airport and Kabul 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 Whangarei Airport (WRE):

• Because of Whangarei Airport's relatively low elevation of 133 feet, planes can take off or land at Whangarei 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.
• The daily Wellington service will continue to be flown by Eagle Airways Beech 1900D.
• The airport has a modern air-conditioned terminal building with free wifi and a cafeteria, which services Air New Zealand's subsidiaries, Eagle Airways and Air Nelson.
• The closest airport to Whangarei Airport (WRE) is Dargaville Aerodrome (DGR), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) WSW of WRE.
• The furthest airport from Whangarei Airport (WRE) is Tangier Ibn Battouta Airport (TNG), which is nearly antipodal to Whangarei Airport (meaning Whangarei Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tangier Ibn Battouta Airport), and is located 12,421 miles (19,989 kilometers) away in Tangier, Morocco.
• This upgrade allowed Air New Zealand, through its subsidary airline Air Nelson, start trialing flights with their new Bombardier Q300 aircraft.
• Ansett went into liquidation in 2001, and this resulted in Air New Zealand's subsidary Eagle Airways being the only major airline operating out of the airport.
• On 9 February 2007, a Robinson R22 helicopter training at Whangarei Airport crash landed in Whangarei Harbour.
• Whangarei Airport (WRE) has 2 runways.

Facts about Kabul International Airport (KDH):

• Kabul International Airport (KDH) currently has only 1 runway.
• Major battles between the Taliban and local anti-Taliban forces had been fought at the airport just days earlier, and when coalition troops arrived there were abandoned weapons - including a BM-21 still loaded with rockets - scattered around the terminal.
• In addition to being known as "Kabul International Airport", other names for KDH include "Kandahar International Airport (Kandahar)" and "میدان هوایی بین المللی کندهار".
• The furthest airport from Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is nearly antipodal to Kabul International Airport (meaning Kabul International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mataveri International Airport), and is located 12,023 miles (19,349 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• Fighting in the Kandahar area was particularly intense.
• In July 2007, the post of Commander, Kandahar Airfield was created as a NATO appointment which, until recently, has been held by an officer of the Royal Air Force of OF-6 rank.
• The Afghan government has been slow in rebuilding the facility, the vast majority of it has been reclaimed from years of neglect and damage by Soviet and Taliban soldiers.
• The airport came into the public eye during the tense drama that was played out when Pakistani terrorists belonging to Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, who hijacked and landed Indian Airlines Flight 814 on the airfield in December 1999, ordered the Government of India to ensure the release and safe-passage of three alleged Pakistani terrorists in return for letting the occupants of the passenger plane leave without harm.
• The closest airport to Kabul International Airport (KDH) is Tarin Kowt Airport (TII), which is located 76 miles (123 kilometers) N of KDH.