---
title: "Istanbul to Tokyo (IST → NRT): distance and flight time · Orbit"
description: "Istanbul to Tokyo is 8,980 km (5,580 mi) great circle, an estimated 11h 40m in the air. The route, what it flies over, and why the short way is not the straight line on a map."
url: https://orbitflights.app/routes/ist-to-nrt
---

IST → NRT

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

İstanbul to Narita is 8,980 km of great circle — 5,580 mi — and an estimated 11h 40m in the air. It crosses from Europe to Asia.

**Great circle**
8,980 km
5,580 mi

**Estimated in the air**
11h 40m
block time

**Furthest from equator**
55.0°N
at 45% along

**One lap of Earth**
22.4%
of 40,075 km

Of the [292 routes catalogued here](https://orbitflights.app/routes), this is the 63rd longest.

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

## What the aircraft actually flies over

From Istanbul the path crosses 606 km of open water, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Russia, then Mongolia, then China, then 853 km of open water, then Japan.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 55.0°N, 45% of the way along.

Flying the line that looks straight on a Mercator map — one constant compass bearing — would cover 9,724 km. That is 744 km further, about 8% more, and roughly 55m of extra flying.

Leaving Istanbul the aircraft points north-east (50°); it arrives into Tokyo heading south-east (135°). That is 85° of drift without a single turn — the compass moves because the path is a curve on a sphere, not because the aircraft does.

One economy seat on it is about 1.27 t of CO₂e each way, counting non-CO₂ warming.

[IST–NRT carbon footprint →](https://orbitflights.app/tools/flight-carbon-calculator?from=IST&to=NRT) [Map this route →](https://orbitflights.app/tools/flight-route-map?r=IST-NRT)

From

IST

## İstanbul

Istanbul, Turkey · Europe

41.3°N, 28.7°E

[IST airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/ist) [Flights to Istanbul →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/istanbul)

To

NRT

## Narita

Tokyo, Japan · Asia

35.8°N, 140.4°E

[NRT airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/nrt) [Flights to Tokyo →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/tokyo)

## Istanbul to Tokyo, asked and answered

**How far is Istanbul to Tokyo?**
Istanbul to Tokyo (IST to NRT) is 8,980 km, or 5,580 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.

**How long is the flight from Istanbul to Tokyo?**
About 11h 40m 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 Tokyo flight take?**
The great circle passes over 606 km of open water, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Russia, then Mongolia, then China, then 853 km of open water, then Japan. It reaches 55.0°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 →](https://orbitflights.app/blog/great-circle-routes-explained)

## Flown this one?

Orbit logs it in two taps and draws the arc on your own globe, along with every other flight you can remember. Free for your first 15.

[Download now](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.qwertybit.orbit)

## Nearby routes

[LAX → NRT Los Angeles to Tokyo 8,753 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lax-to-nrt) [IST → SIN Istanbul to Singapore 8,681 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/ist-to-sin) [LHR → NRT London to Tokyo 9,591 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-nrt) [IST → JFK Istanbul to New York 8,026 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/ist-to-jfk) [HEL → NRT Helsinki to Tokyo 7,829 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/hel-to-nrt) [IST → BKK Istanbul to Bangkok 7,514 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/ist-to-bkk)

## Further reading

[How many miles do you have to fly around the world?](https://orbitflights.app/blog/how-many-miles-to-fly-around-the-world) [What is on the exact opposite side of the world?](https://orbitflights.app/blog/opposite-side-of-the-world) [What's actually worth counting in a flight log](https://orbitflights.app/blog/what-is-worth-counting-in-a-flight-log)

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Markdown copy of https://orbitflights.app/routes/ist-to-nrt for language models and agents. Site index: https://orbitflights.app/llms.txt