Nonstop flight route between Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Astoria, Oregon, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Astoria Regional Airport (AST), Astoria, Oregon, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,899 miles (or 7,884 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 MDPGA Wethersfield and Astoria 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 MDPGA Wethersfield and Astoria 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 MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF):

• MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) has 3 runways.
• On 21 September the 416th moved to their Advanced Landing Ground at Melun/Villaroche France.
• Because of MDPGA Wethersfield's relatively low elevation of 322 feet, planes can take off or land at MDPGA Wethersfield 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 819th, along with the 2166th Communications Squadron, were the main units at Wethersfeld until the USAF returned the base to the British in 1990 due to budget cutbacks.
• The furthest airport from MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,856 miles (19,080 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The fighter squadrons of the 20th had been in constant rotation since the arrival of the wing at Wethersfield in 1952.
• In addition to being known as "MDPGA Wethersfield", another name for WXF is "RAF Wethersfield".
• In 1951, as a result of the Cold War threat of the Soviet Union, the British provided RAF Wethersfield to the USAF as part of their NATO commitment.
• The closest airport to MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is London Stansted Airport (STN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of WXF.
• The closure of US bases in France forced the opening of RAF Greenham Common under 20th TFW management to handle personnel overflow beginning in January 1967.
• In August 1976 the 66th CSS became Detachment 1, 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, based at RAF Alconbury.

Facts about Astoria Regional Airport (AST):

• Astoria Regional Airport (AST) has 2 runways.
• Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 1,851 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 1,531 in 2009 and 3,482 in 2010.
• The furthest airport from Astoria Regional Airport (AST) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,892 miles (17,529 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The closest airport to Astoria Regional Airport (AST) is Southwest Washington Regional Airport (KLS), which is located 47 miles (76 kilometers) E of AST.
• Because of Astoria Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Astoria 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.