Nonstop flight route between Christmas Island, Australia and Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991):

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Christmas Island Airport (XCH), Christmas Island, Australia and Pulkovo Airport (LED), Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,346 miles (or 10,213 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 Christmas Island Airport and Pulkovo 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 Christmas Island Airport and Pulkovo 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 Christmas Island Airport (XCH):

• The closest airport to Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Cibeureum Airfield (TSY), which is located 276 miles (445 kilometers) NE of XCH.
• Because of Christmas Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 916 feet, planes can take off or land at Christmas Island 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.
• Christmas Island Airport (XCH) currently has only 1 runway.
• After the closure of the casino, the resort was taken over by the Asia Pacific Space Centre, which developed plans for a satellite launch facility on Christmas Island.
• The furthest airport from Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport (BAQ), which is nearly antipodal to Christmas Island Airport (meaning Christmas Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport), and is located 12,393 miles (19,944 kilometers) away in Barranquilla, Colombia.
• The airport's location at the top of a hill, with a 2% mid-runway gradient, makes it a challenging landing for pilots.
• Christmas Island Airport handled 27,286 passengers last year.

Facts about Pulkovo Airport (LED):

• The furthest airport from Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,868 miles (17,491 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Pulkovo Airport's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Pulkovo 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.
• Pulkovo Airport handled 12,854,366 passengers last year.
• Pulkovo Airport (LED) has 2 runways.
• The airport has two main runways.
• In May 2008, the City of Saint Petersburg opened a 1.5 bn USD tender for a 30-year concession to operate Pulkovo Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Pulkovo Airport", another name for LED is "Аэропо́рт Пу́лково".
• The closest airport to Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Rzhevka Airport (RVH), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NE of LED.
• During the Second World War the airport was the frontline in the Nazi Siege of Leningrad.