---
title: "London to Delhi (LHR → DEL): distance and flight time · Orbit"
description: "London to Delhi is 6,731 km (4,183 mi) great circle, an estimated 8h 52m 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/lhr-to-del
---

LHR → DEL

# London to Delhi: distance, flight time and the route it really takes

London Heathrow to Indira Gandhi is 6,731 km of great circle — 4,183 mi — and an estimated 8h 52m in the air. It crosses from Europe to Asia.

**Great circle**
6,731 km
4,183 mi

**Estimated in the air**
8h 52m
block time

**Furthest from equator**
52.1°N
at 13% along

**One lap of Earth**
16.8%
of 40,075 km

Of the [292 routes catalogued here](https://orbitflights.app/routes), this is the 99th longest.

The London to Delhi route drawn as a great circle arc on a globe

## What the aircraft actually flies over

From London the path crosses Netherlands, then Germany, then Poland, then Ukraine, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Uzbekistan, then Turkmenistan, then Afghanistan, then Pakistan, then India.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 52.1°N, 13% of the way along.

Flying the line that looks straight on a Mercator map — one constant compass bearing — would cover 6,979 km. That is 248 km further, about 4% more, and roughly 18m of extra flying.

Leaving London the aircraft points east (80°); it arrives into Delhi heading south-east (136°). That is 56° 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 954 kg of CO₂e each way, counting non-CO₂ warming.

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

From

LHR

## London Heathrow

London, United Kingdom · Europe

51.5°N, 0.5°W

[LHR airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/lhr) [Flights to London →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/london)

To

DEL

## Indira Gandhi

Delhi, India · Asia

28.6°N, 77.1°E

[DEL airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/del) [Flights to Delhi →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/delhi)

## London to Delhi, asked and answered

**How far is London to Delhi?**
London to Delhi (LHR to DEL) is 6,731 km, or 4,183 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.

**How long is the flight from London to Delhi?**
About 8h 52m 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 London to Delhi flight take?**
The great circle passes over Netherlands, then Germany, then Poland, then Ukraine, then Russia, then Kazakhstan, then Uzbekistan, then Turkmenistan, then Afghanistan, then Pakistan, then India. It reaches 52.1°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

[LHR → ATL London to Atlanta 6,761 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-atl) [LHR → NBO London to Nairobi 6,841 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-nbo) [LHR → MIA London to Miami 7,109 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-mia) [LHR → ORD London to Chicago 6,344 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-ord) [LHR → BOM London to Mumbai 7,213 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-bom) [FRA → DEL Frankfurt to Delhi 6,122 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/fra-to-del)

## 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/lhr-to-del for language models and agents. Site index: https://orbitflights.app/llms.txt