Nonstop flight route between Zaranj, Afghanistan and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Zaranj Airport (ZAJ), Zaranj, Afghanistan and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,821 miles (or 9,368 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 Zaranj Airport and Elmendorf 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 Zaranj Airport and Elmendorf 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 Zaranj Airport (ZAJ):

• The furthest airport from Zaranj Airport (ZAJ) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,849 miles (19,069 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• The closest airport to Zaranj Airport (ZAJ) is Zabol Airport (ACZ), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) WNW of ZAJ.
• In addition to being known as "Zaranj Airport", other names for ZAJ include "Zaranj Airport (Zaranj)" and "KDH".

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States military facility in Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska.
• On 16 November 2010, a Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor took off for a training mission.
• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• On 22 September 1995, a Boeing E-3 Sentry Airborne early warning and control aircraft with 22 USAF personnel and two Canadian air crew members crashed after ingesting a flock of Canada Geese, killing all on board.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The Department of Defense proposed a major realignment of the base as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program announced on 13 May 2005.
• Following World War II, Elmendorf assumed an increasing role in the defense of North America as the uncertain wartime relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated into the Cold War.