Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Natori, Japan:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to SDJ:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- SDJ Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about SDJ
- 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 SDJ
- List of Nearest Airports to SDJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from SDJ
- List of Furthest Airports from SDJ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Sendai Airport (SDJ), Natori, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,835 miles (or 9,391 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 RAF Fairford and Sendai 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 RAF Fairford and Sendai Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
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: | SDJ / RJSS |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Natori, Japan |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°8'22"N by 140°55'0"E |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 6 feet (2 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SDJ |
More Information: | SDJ Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- 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.
- In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
- The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of 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.
- 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.
- 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 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 Sendai Airport (SDJ):
- The west end of the terminal services domestic routes and the east side international routes.
- The furthest airport from Sendai Airport (SDJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,588 miles (18,650 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
- Sendai Airport (SDJ) has 2 runways.
- Because of Sendai Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Sendai 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 Sendai Airport (SDJ) is Yamagata Airport (GAJ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) WNW of SDJ.
- To reopen the airport, on 16 March 2011 a team from the United States Air Force's 320th Special Tactics Squadron from Kadena Air Base parachuted into Matsushima, Miyagi, then moved overland to the airport.
- In addition to being known as "Sendai Airport", other names for SDJ include "仙台空港" and "Sendai Kūkō".
- In 1940, the Imperial Japanese Army built Sendai Airport in order to use it for the Kumakaya Army Flight School, Masda Branch School Trainee Training Center.
- To the south side of the airport are the facilities for small private aircraft, helipads and aircraft hangars.
- The airport can be accessed by car via Sendai-Tobu Toll Road via Route 20.