Nonstop flight route between Kugluktuk, Nunavut, Canada and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kugluktuk Airport (YCO), Kugluktuk, Nunavut, Canada and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,501 miles (or 5,635 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 Kugluktuk Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Kugluktuk Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Kugluktuk Airport (YCO):

• The closest airport to Kugluktuk Airport (YCO) is Ulukhaktok/Holman Airport (YHI), which is located 214 miles (344 kilometers) NNW of YCO.
• The furthest airport from Kugluktuk Airport (YCO) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 9,636 miles (15,508 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Kugluktuk Airport (YCO) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Kugluktuk Airport's relatively low elevation of 74 feet, planes can take off or land at Kugluktuk 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 RAF Fairford (FFD):

• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• On 14 January 2004, the 420th Air Base Group was established at RAF Fairford to improve the control of its geographically separated units that had been aligned beneath the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall.