Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to FZO:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- FZO Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about FZO
- Map of Nearest Airports to FFD
- List of Nearest Airports to FFD
- Map of Furthest Airports from FFD
- List of Furthest Airports from FFD
- Map of Nearest Airports to FZO
- List of Nearest Airports to FZO
- Map of Furthest Airports from FZO
- List of Furthest Airports from FZO
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Bristol Filton Airport (FZO), Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 36 miles (or 58 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 RAF Fairford and Bristol Filton Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FFD / EGVA |
Airport Name: | RAF Fairford |
Location: | Fairford, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°40'55"N by 1°47'24"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from FFD |
More Information: | FFD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FZO / EGTG |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°31'9"N by 2°35'36"W |
Area Served: | Bristol |
Operator/Owner: | BAE Systems Aviation Services Ltd |
Airport Type: | Private |
Elevation: | 225 feet (69 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from FZO |
More Information: | FZO Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.
- 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.
- Royal Air Force Fairford or more simply RAF Fairford is a Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, England which is currently a standby airfield and therefore not in everyday use.
- The 422nd ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.
- Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
- Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
- On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
- 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.
Facts about Bristol Filton Airport (FZO):
- From 1929 the 501 Squadron was based at RAF Filton.
- Because of Bristol Filton Airport's relatively low elevation of 225 feet, planes can take off or land at Bristol Filton 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 closest airport to Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Bristol Airport (BRS), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSW of FZO.
- Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,930 miles (19,200 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
- The manufacture of aeroplanes started in 1910, when Sir George White, the owner of Bristol Tramways, established the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company in the maintenance sheds of Bristol Tramways.
- In 1948, 501 Squadron was equipped with De Havilland Vampire jets.
- In addition to being known as "Bristol Filton Airport", another name for FZO is "Filton Aerodrome".
- Before D-Day, US-manufactured aircraft were assembled at Filton Aerodrome, from assemblies imported via Avonmouth docks.
- In 1960, an RAF Vulcan bomber, approaching from the west, landed at Filton in heavy rain.