Nonstop flight route between Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), Braintree, England, United Kingdom and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,934 miles (or 9,551 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 King Shaka International, 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 King Shaka International. 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 20th Fighter Bomber Wing established an operational detachment at Wheelus AB, Libya, in February 1958.
• The Operational Support Unit moved to Wethersfield from RAF Wittering and has been permanently based there since May 1992.
• 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.
• MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) has 3 runways.
• In addition to being known as "MDPGA Wethersfield", another name for WXF is "RAF Wethersfield".
• The closest airport to MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is London Stansted Airport (STN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of WXF.
• The group returned to the United States in July 1945 and was inactivated at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts, on 23 October 1945.
• 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 20th began realigning its units 15 March 1957 as part of an Air Force worldwide reorganization.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• One of the objectives of the cargo terminal is to recapture local air freight traffic from JNB.
• The airport forms part of the Dube Tradeport, which will additionally consist of a trade zone linked to the airport's cargo terminal, facilities to support the airport such as nearby offices and transit accommodation for tourists, an integrated agricultural export zone, and an IT platform.
• The project was then hit by a tender war between the Illembe consortium and the Indiza consortium.
• As a result, a study into the risks of bird strikes at KSIA was commissioned, with special attention being paid to the Barn Swallows at Mount Moreland.
• Mount Moreland, a small community located 2.6 km south of the airport, is an important roosting site for the European Barn Swallow.
• Despite wide expectations that the airport would be named "King Shaka International Airport", it emerged in October 2009 that the airport needed to undergo a formal naming process.
• The largest aircraft KSIA currently has scheduled services for is the Boeing 777-300ER, with Emirates operating Dubai–Durban, despite the fact that KSIA's runway length and terminal were designed to theoretically handle regular large airliners.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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 furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• On 27 January 2014 the worlds largest passenger aircraft, an Airbus A380-800 of British Airways landed at KSIA becoming the first A380 to do so.
• King Shaka International Airport, also known as La Mercy Airport, and abbreviated KSIA, is the primary airport serving Durban, South Africa.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.