Nonstop flight route between Nadi, Fiji and Falalop Island, Yap, Federated States of Micronesia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nadi International Airport (NAN), Nadi, Fiji and Falalop Airfield (ULI), Falalop Island, Yap, Federated States of Micronesia would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,207 miles (or 5,161 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 Nadi International Airport and Falalop Airfield, 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 Nadi International Airport and Falalop Airfield. 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 Nadi International Airport (NAN):

• Nadi International Airport is the main international airport for the Republic of Fiji as well as an important regional hub for the South Pacific islands, located by the coast on the western side of the main island Viti Levu.
• Nadi International Airport (NAN) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Nadi International Airport (NAN) is Timbuktu Airport (TOM), which is nearly antipodal to Nadi International Airport (meaning Nadi International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Timbuktu Airport), and is located 12,360 miles (19,891 kilometers) away in Timbuktu, Mali.
• The closest airport to Nadi International Airport (NAN) is Mana Island Airport (MNF), which is located 23 miles (38 kilometers) WNW of NAN.
• Then, as now, Fiji was the crossroads of the Pacific – and in those days was even more important as a refuelling stop.
• During the first half of the 1960s, Nadi served as a key airport for transfer of passengers from Auckland's Whenuapai airport which could only take turboprop and piston aeroplanes, onto the new DC-8s and Boeing 707s bound for North America and Europe.
• Arrivals and departures are much preferred to be to the south, due to the closeness of the Sabeto mountain range to the immediate north of the airport.
• Because of Nadi International Airport's relatively low elevation of 59 feet, planes can take off or land at Nadi International 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.
• Nadi is the operational base for Fiji Airways, which services six airports throughout the southwest Pacific, and many more on the Pacific Rim.

Facts about Falalop Airfield (ULI):

• The closest airport to Falalop Airfield (ULI) is Yap International Airport (YAP), which is located 122 miles (196 kilometers) WSW of ULI.
• Units stationed at Falalop included VMD-354 operating photo-reconnaissance F4Us and VMF-542 operating F6F-3N night-fighters.
• The furthest airport from Falalop Airfield (ULI) is Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho Airport (PNZ), which is nearly antipodal to Falalop Airfield (meaning Falalop Airfield is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho Airport), and is located 12,385 miles (19,931 kilometers) away in Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil.
• The airfield remains in use today.