Nonstop flight route between Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Big Spring, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,965 miles (or 7,990 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield, 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield. 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):

• The closest airport to MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is London Stansted Airport (STN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of WXF.
• During the late 1940s the base was used as a winter camping ground for Chipperfield's Circus.
• 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 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.
• On 6 June 1982 614 VGS moved to MDPGA Wethersfield from RAF Debden, as that base was required for tank training.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "MDPGA Wethersfield", another name for WXF is "RAF Wethersfield".
• 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.
• MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) has 3 runways.
• MDPGA Wethersfield is a Ministry of Defence facility in Essex, England, located north of the village of Wethersfield, about 6 mi north-west of the town of Braintree.

Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• The Air Force established a standard wing structure—a dual deputy concept—in 1963.
• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• By the mid-1970s, the end of the Vietnam War, the associated financial costs of that conflict and related cuts in USAF force structure and future defense budgets meant a marked decrease in the need for Air Force pilots.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
• The AT-11 which was activated to replace the separate air and ground units.
• In 1956, the Air Defense Command 331st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was transferred to Webb from Stewart Air Force Base in New York to defend the southern United States border on air intercept missions as part of the Central Air Defense Force.
• Emblem of the AAF Bombardier School Big Spring AAF