Nonstop flight route between Xiangfan, Hubei, China and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Xiangyang Liuji Airport (XFN), Xiangfan, Hubei, China and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,160 miles (or 8,305 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 Xiangyang Liuji Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, 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 Xiangyang Liuji Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component. 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 Xiangyang Liuji Airport (XFN):

• Xiangyang Liuji Airport (XFN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Xiangyang Liuji Airport (XFN) is Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Airport (UAQ), which is nearly antipodal to Xiangyang Liuji Airport (meaning Xiangyang Liuji Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Airport), and is located 12,381 miles (19,926 kilometers) away in San Juan Province, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Xiangyang Liuji Airport (XFN) is Nanyang Jiangying Airport (NNY), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) NNE of XFN.
• In addition to being known as "Xiangyang Liuji Airport", other names for XFN include "襄阳刘集机场" and "Xiāngyáng Liújí Jīchǎng".

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• The E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
• Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E­3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.
• The fleet of E-3's has remained in operation since the Cold War and has adapted its mission to emerging security threats, primarily in European airspace.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Major construction on the base initially included a new 3,000-metre runway with a width of 45 metres, as well as aprons and taxiways, a control tower, an Information Technology Wing building, on-base accommodation and major renovation of the four existing hangars.
• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.