Flight Time Calculator
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This flight time calculator turns any two airports into a distance and an estimated flight duration. Type a city, airport name, or three-letter IATA code into each box, and it works out the great-circle distance between them and roughly how long the flight takes. It is the fast way to answer how long a flight takes from one place to another when you are planning a trip, sizing up a route you saw on a map, or just curious how far apart two cities really are.
Popular flight routes
Some of the most searched city pairs, with the great-circle distance and estimated flight time worked out by the calculator above. Pick any route to load it into the calculator.
How this is calculated
This is a straight-line, great-circle estimate: the shortest possible path between the two airports' coordinates, plus a typical cruise speed and a flat allowance for taxi, takeoff, climb, and descent. It is not a schedule.
Real flights follow published airways, not a straight line, and get rerouted around weather, traffic, and airspace restrictions. Headwinds and tailwinds alone can shift an actual flight time by an hour or more in either direction. Treat the number above as a reasonable ballpark, not a boarding-pass guarantee.
Assumes a cruise speed of 485 knots (~900 km/h, typical for a long-haul jet) and a fixed 30-minute allowance for taxi, climb, and descent. Distance uses each airport's published coordinates.
Flight time calculator FAQ
How does the flight time calculator work?
It measures the great-circle distance between the two airports you pick, the shortest path over the curve of the Earth, then divides that distance by a typical long-haul cruise speed of 485 knots and adds a flat 30 minutes for taxi, takeoff, climb, and descent. You get the distance in nautical miles, kilometers, and miles, plus an estimated flight time.
How accurate is the estimated flight time?
Treat it as a solid ballpark, not a schedule. The estimate uses one fixed cruise speed and a straight-line path, so it lands close on some routes and off by a fair bit on others. It is meant to answer "roughly how long is this flight," not to match a specific airline timetable.
Why is my real flight time different from the estimate?
Real flights do not fly a straight line at a single speed. They follow published airways, get vectored around weather and traffic by air traffic control, and ride headwinds or tailwinds that can add or subtract an hour or more on a long route. The calculator does not model any of that. It gives you the great-circle baseline that the real world varies around.
What is the difference between great-circle distance and the actual route?
Great-circle distance is the shortest possible path between two points on a sphere. The actual route a plane flies is usually longer, because it follows airways, avoids restricted airspace, and gets rerouted in the air. The calculator reports the great-circle distance, which is the clean lower bound.
Can I calculate the flight time from any airport to any other?
Yes. Start typing a city, airport name, or IATA code such as JFK or LHR in either box and pick from the list. It covers airports worldwide with scheduled service, so most "flight time from X to Y" questions are a couple of keystrokes away.