Nonstop flight route between Christmas Island, Australia and Knob Noster, Missouri, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Christmas Island Airport (XCH), Christmas Island, Australia and Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,150 miles (or 16,335 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 Whiteman Air Force Base, 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 Whiteman Air Force Base. 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 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.
• 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 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.
• The closest airport to Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Cibeureum Airfield (TSY), which is located 276 miles (445 kilometers) NE of XCH.
• Christmas Island Airport (XCH) currently has only 1 runway.
• A brief revival of the "old days" happened in 2001 during the "Tampa" crisis when the heightened Royal Australian Air Force traffic was complemented by a large number of Department of Immigration and Citizenship and media charters.
• 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.

Facts about Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):

• In the opening months of 1945 Sedalia AAFld began converting from C-47s to C-46s.
• The contractors used 168,000 yards of concrete, 25,355 tons of reinforcing steel and 15,120 tons of structural steel.
• During the massive demobilization in the mid-1940s, the base closed and most of the buildings were abandoned.
• Construction on Whiteman continued throughout the 1950s.
• The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
• The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Whiteman AFB is the only permanent base for the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber.
• Missouri Army National Guard 1st Battalion 135th Attack Reconnaissance Brigade, AH-64 Apache
• The 131st Bomb Wing is a unit of the Missouri Air National Guard.
• In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".