Nonstop flight route between Château-Thierry, France and Spokane, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY), Château-Thierry, France and Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA), Spokane, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,885 miles (or 7,862 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome and Fairchild 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome and Fairchild 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY):

• Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) is Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) ENE of XCY.
• In addition to being known as "Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome", another name for XCY is "Aérodrome de Château-Thierry - Belleau".
• Because of Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 723 feet, planes can take off or land at Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (meaning Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,073 miles (19,430 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA):

• From 1942 until 1946, the base served as a repair depot for damaged aircraft returning from the Pacific Theater.
• Since 1942, Fairchild Air Force Base/Station has been a key part of the United States' defense strategy—from World War II repair depot, to Strategic Air Command bomber wing during the Cold War, to Air Mobility Command air refueling wing during Operation IRAQI FREEDOM.
• On 24 June 1994 one of the few remaining B-52H aircraft at Fairchild crashed during a practice flight for an upcoming air show, killing all four crew members.
• The closest airport to Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Spokane International Airport (GEG), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) E of SKA.
• As military operations in Vietnam escalated in the mid-1960s, the demand for air refueling increased.
• The furthest airport from Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,665 miles (17,163 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In addition to being known as "Fairchild Air Force Base", another name for SKA is "Fairchild AFB".