Nonstop flight route between Thames, New Zealand and Chicago, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Thames Aerodrome (TMZ), Thames, New Zealand and Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), Chicago, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,164 miles (or 13,138 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 Thames Aerodrome and Chicago Midway International 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 Thames Aerodrome and Chicago Midway International Airport. 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 Thames Aerodrome (TMZ):

• Because of Thames Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Thames Aerodrome 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.
• Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) is Málaga Airport (AGP), which is nearly antipodal to Thames Aerodrome (meaning Thames Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Málaga Airport), and is located 12,403 miles (19,961 kilometers) away in Málaga, Spain.
• The closest airport to Thames Aerodrome (TMZ) is Coromandel Aerodrome (CMV), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) N of TMZ.

Facts about Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW):

• Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) has 5 runways.
• The closest airport to Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) NNW of MDW.
• On April 20, 2009, a $2.5 billion deal to privatize the airport via a 99-year lease fell through when the consortium could not put together financing.
• The furthest airport from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,083 miles (17,836 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Chicago Midway International Airport's relatively low elevation of 620 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago Midway 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.
• In June 2004, Mayor Daley and airline officials celebrated the completion of the Terminal Development Program.
• The Chicago Transit Authority displaced the Carlton Midway Inn to open a new CTA terminal at the airport on October 31, 1993, for the new Chicago 'L' Orange Line that connected Midway to Chicago's Loop.
• More construction was funded in part by $1 million from the Works Progress Administration.
• In September 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel terminated negotiations to privatize the airport, noting that the process was no longer competitive after one of the two finalists had backed out.
• In November 2008, Porter Airlines, which flies between Midway and Toronto, Canada, was the only international route served from Chicago–Midway after ATA Airlines, which had flights to Mexico, ceased operations in April that year.
• Because Midway is surrounded by buildings and other development, the landing thresholds of the runways are displaced to provide a proper obstacle clearance.
• Originally named Chicago Air Park, Midway Airport was built on a 320-acre plot in 1923 with one cinder runway mainly for airmail flights.