Flight Distance Calculator
Great-circle distance between two airports, with an approximate flight time
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Calculates the great-circle distance between two airports, the shortest path along the Earth's surface, in kilometres, miles and nautical miles, with an approximate flight time. Trips with stops get a distance for each leg and a total, and round trips are counted both ways.
How to use
- In "From" and "To", type an airport code (for example LHR), a city or an airport name and pick it from the list. Typing latitude, longitude lets you use those coordinates instead.
- The great-circle distance appears at once. Use the "km", "mi" and "NM" buttons to change the unit.
- Press "Add a stop" for a connecting airport, or tick "Round trip (back the same way)". The "Distance by leg" table lists each leg with its distance and time.
- Open "Flight time assumptions and method" to change "Average speed" and "Time added per leg"; the approximate flight time updates.
How it works
- Distance and initial bearing use Vincenty's formula on the WGS84 ellipsoid. Legs between nearly opposite points, where that formula does not converge, use the spherical haversine formula, and the page says which method was used.
- Approximate flight time = distance ÷ average speed + time added per leg. The defaults are 850 km/h and 30 minutes; real times depend on wind and routing.
- The airport list holds large and medium airports with scheduled passenger service from OurAirports (public domain); the extraction date is shown. Your last airports are saved in this browser.
Questions and answers
- How far is New York to London by plane?
- The great-circle distance from JFK to London Heathrow (LHR) is about 5,555 km, or about 3,452 miles. Flights cover more than that because they follow airways and winds.
- What is a great-circle distance?
- It is the length of the shortest path between two points on the surface of the globe. On a flat map it looks curved, which is why routes between Europe and North America bend toward the Arctic.
- How many kilometres is a nautical mile?
- One nautical mile is exactly 1.852 km, and one statute mile is 1.609344 km. Aviation and shipping usually measure distance in nautical miles.
- Is this the same as frequent-flyer miles?
- Not necessarily. Airlines set earned miles with their own charts, so the tool does not calculate mileage credit.