Nonstop flight route between Buttonville, Ontario, Canada and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Buttonville Airport (YKZ), Buttonville, Ontario, Canada and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,278 miles (or 3,667 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 relatively short distance between Buttonville Airport and Thule Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Buttonville Airport (YKZ):

• On 20 June 2010, an accident occurred just off Buttonville Airport.
• Buttonville Airport is in a Class D control zone.
• The new tower provides expanded operational space, optimal visibility and the latest in air navigation equipment and technology for 10 air traffic controllers and one support staff who provide service to some 150,000 aircraft movements per year at Buttonville Airport.
• The new tower, representing an investment of over $2 million, replaced the existing facility which was built in 1967 and had reached the end of its useful life.
• Buttonville Airport (YKZ) has 2 runways.
• Buttonville Airport began as a grass airstrip in 1953 when Leggat Aviation moved its operations from Barker Field in Toronto.
• The furthest airport from Buttonville Airport (YKZ) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,402 miles (18,350 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Buttonville Airport (YKZ) is Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) S of YKZ.
• Because of Buttonville Airport's relatively low elevation of 650 feet, planes can take off or land at Buttonville 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 Thule Air Base (THU):

• In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
• In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• A delegation from NATO's Parliamentary Assembly visited Thule in early September 2010 and were told by the base commander that, at that time, approximately 600 personnel were serving at Thule, a mix of mostly U.S.
• In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
• Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
• After liberation, Denmark ratified the Kauffmann treaty but began efforts to take over U.S.