Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Bowen, Queensland, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to ZBO:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- ZBO Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about ZBO
- 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 ZBO
- List of Nearest Airports to ZBO
- Map of Furthest Airports from ZBO
- List of Furthest Airports from ZBO
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Bowen Airport (ZBO), Bowen, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,717 miles (or 15,638 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 Bowen 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 Bowen 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: | ZBO / YBWN |
Airport Name: | Bowen Airport |
Location: | Bowen, Queensland, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 20°1'4"S by 148°12'55"E |
Operator/Owner: | Whitsunday Regional Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 26 feet (8 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ZBO |
More Information: | ZBO Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
- Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
- In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Bowen Airport (ZBO):
- The furthest airport from Bowen Airport (ZBO) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,957 miles (19,243 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
- Bowen Airport (ZBO) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Bowen Airport (ZBO) is Whitsunday Airport (WSY), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) ESE of ZBO.
- Because of Bowen Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bowen 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.