Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Big Lake, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GKE to BGQ:
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- About this route
- GKE Airport Information
- BGQ Airport Information
- Facts about GKE
- Facts about BGQ
- Map of Nearest Airports to GKE
- List of Nearest Airports to GKE
- Map of Furthest Airports from GKE
- List of Furthest Airports from GKE
- Map of Nearest Airports to BGQ
- List of Nearest Airports to BGQ
- Map of Furthest Airports from BGQ
- List of Furthest Airports from BGQ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Big Lake Airport (BGQ), Big Lake, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,551 miles (or 7,324 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Big Lake 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Big Lake Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GKE / ETNG |
Airport Name: | NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component |
Location: | Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany |
GPS Coordinates: | 50°57'38"N by 6°2'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | NATO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 296 feet (90 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GKE |
More Information: | GKE Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BGQ / PAGQ |
Airport Name: | Big Lake Airport |
Location: | Big Lake, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°32'9"N by 149°48'50"W |
Area Served: | Big Lake, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | State of Alaska DOT&PF - Central Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 158 feet (48 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BGQ |
More Information: | BGQ Maps & Info |
Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):
- The E-3A Component directly employs more than 3,000 personnel at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen and therefore has a significant economic impact in the surrounding communities.
- NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.
- The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
- Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
- In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
- Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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 furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- The E-3A Component is NATO's first operational flying unit with multinational manning.
- Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
- The Component operates seventeen Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft all of which are based on the Boeing 707 airframe Trainer Cargo Aircraft but which have since been retired).
- The fleet of E-3's has remained in operation since the Cold War and has adapted its mission to emerging security threats, primarily in European airspace.
Facts about Big Lake Airport (BGQ):
- The furthest airport from Big Lake Airport (BGQ) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,522 miles (16,934 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- Big Lake Airport (BGQ) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Big Lake Airport's relatively low elevation of 158 feet, planes can take off or land at Big Lake 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 Big Lake Airport (BGQ) is Wasilla Airport (WWA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) ENE of BGQ.