Nonstop flight route between Valenciennes, France and Oscoda, Michigan, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France and Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (OSC), Oscoda, Michigan, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,846 miles (or 6,190 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 Valenciennes-Denain Airport and Oscoda-Wurtsmith 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 Valenciennes-Denain Airport and Oscoda-Wurtsmith 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 Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):

• Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
• Denain Airport began as a pre-World War II airport in France, most likely with a grass runway and several support buildings and a hangar.
• The wartime air base is still evident with the 5500' concrete NE/SW runway remaining, complete with patched bomb craters and expansion joints allowing grass to grow between the concrete pads.
• The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.
• Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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.
• The furthest airport from Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Denain Airport was cleared of German forces by Allied ground forces about 11 September 1944 during the Northern France Campaign.
• In French control after the war, the airport sat abandoned for several years.

Facts about Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (OSC):

• The closest airport to Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (OSC) is Alpena County Regional Airport (APN), which is located 44 miles (71 kilometers) N of OSC.
• It was built out of a portion of the decommissioned Wurtsmith Air Force Base which housed nuclear armed B-52 Stratofortress bombers during the Cold War as well as several air refueling squadrons.
• Of note is the operations of the Yankee Air Force Museum - Wurtsmith Division.
• The furthest airport from Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (OSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,213 miles (18,046 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport (OSC) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport's relatively low elevation of 634 feet, planes can take off or land at Oscoda-Wurtsmith 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.
• For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2005, the airport had 8,857 aircraft operations, an average of 24 per day, all of which were general aviation.