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IST → JNB

Istanbul to Johannesburg: distance, flight time and the route it really takes

İstanbul to O.R. Tambo is 7,496 km of great circle — 4,658 mi — and an estimated 9h 49m in the air. It crosses from Europe to Africa.

Great circle
7,496 km
4,658 mi
Estimated in the air
9h 49m
block time
Furthest from equator
41.3°N
at 0% along
One lap of Earth
18.7%
of 40,075 km

Of the 292 routes catalogued here, this is the 91st longest.

The Istanbul to Johannesburg route drawn as a great circle arc on a globe

What the aircraft actually flies over

From Istanbul the path crosses Turkey, then 637 km of open water, then Egypt, then Sudan, then South Sudan, then the Democratic Republic of the Congo, then Zambia, then Zimbabwe, then Botswana, then South Africa.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 41.3°N, 0% of the way along.

Holding a single compass bearing the whole way would cover almost exactly the same ground, so on this route the flat map and the globe agree.

The heading barely moves: south out of Istanbul, south into Johannesburg. Over this distance the curve has too little room to bend the compass.

From

IST

İstanbul

Istanbul, Turkey · Europe

41.3°N, 28.7°E

To

JNB

O.R. Tambo

Johannesburg, South Africa · Africa

26.1°S, 28.2°E

Istanbul to Johannesburg, asked and answered

How far is Istanbul to Johannesburg?
Istanbul to Johannesburg (IST to JNB) is 7,496 km, or 4,658 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.
How long is the flight from Istanbul to Johannesburg?
About 9h 49m in the air. That is an estimate from the distance at a typical airliner block speed, plus half an hour for taxi, climb and descent; published schedules vary with winds and routing.
What route does a Istanbul to Johannesburg flight take?
The great circle passes over Turkey, then 637 km of open water, then Egypt, then Sudan, then South Sudan, then the Democratic Republic of the Congo, then Zambia, then Zimbabwe, then Botswana, then South Africa. It reaches 41.3°N at its furthest from the equator.

Where these numbers come from

Distances are computed from the two airports’ own coordinates, not looked up from published routes. Times are estimates, not schedules.

Why the shortest path is a curve →

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