Nonstop flight route between Fairfield, California, United States and Istres, France:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SUU to QIE:
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- About this route
- SUU Airport Information
- QIE Airport Information
- Facts about SUU
- Facts about QIE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SUU
- List of Nearest Airports to SUU
- Map of Furthest Airports from SUU
- List of Furthest Airports from SUU
- Map of Nearest Airports to QIE
- List of Nearest Airports to QIE
- Map of Furthest Airports from QIE
- List of Furthest Airports from QIE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU), Fairfield, California, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,882 miles (or 9,466 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 Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SUU / KSUU |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Fairfield, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°15'46"N by 121°55'38"W |
View all routes: | Routes from SUU |
More Information: | SUU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | QIE / LFMI |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Istres, France |
GPS Coordinates: | 43°31'27"N by 4°56'30"E |
Operator/Owner: | Government of France |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 162 feet (49 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from QIE |
More Information: | QIE Maps & Info |
Facts about Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU):
- Travis AFB also plays host to the Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum, one of the largest collections of military aircraft on the west coast.
- The closest airport to Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU) is Nut Tree Airport (VCB), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NNW of SUU.
- The furthest airport from Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,315 miles (18,210 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The sites at Elmira and Fairfield/Cement Hill later received modifications to accept the Nike Hercules missile, while the sites at Dixon/Lambie and Potrero Hills were inactivated in 1959.
- In 1992, with the reorganization of the Air Force following the end of the Cold War, Military Airlift Command was inactivated and Travis came under the control of the newly established Air Mobility Command.
- The host unit at Travis AFB is the 60th Air Mobility Wing.
- In addition to being known as "Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield", another name for SUU is "Travis AFB".
- By the end of World War II, Fairfield-Suisun AAB had become the West Coast's largest aerial port.
Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):
- Base aérienne 125 Istres Advanced Landing Ground Y-17
- The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
- The base also hosts a helicopter squadron and a large repair and training facility.
- The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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.
- In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
- The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
- Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.
- Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.