---
title: "London to Beijing (LHR → PEK): distance and flight time · Orbit"
description: "London to Beijing is 8,154 km (5,067 mi) great circle, an estimated 10h 38m 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-pek
---

LHR → PEK

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

London Heathrow to Beijing Capital is 8,154 km of great circle — 5,067 mi — and an estimated 10h 38m in the air. It crosses from Europe to Asia.

**Great circle**
8,154 km
5,067 mi

**Estimated in the air**
10h 38m
block time

**Furthest from equator**
63.7°N
at 40% along

**One lap of Earth**
20.3%
of 40,075 km

Of the [292 routes catalogued here](https://orbitflights.app/routes), this is the 78th longest.

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

## What the aircraft actually flies over

From London the path crosses United Kingdom, then 550 km of open water, then Denmark, then Sweden, then Finland, then Russia, then Mongolia, then China.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 63.7°N, 40% of the way along.

Flying the line that looks straight on a Mercator map — one constant compass bearing — would cover 9,120 km. That is 966 km further, about 12% more, and roughly 1h 12m of extra flying.

Leaving London the aircraft points north-east (45°); it arrives into Beijing heading south-east (145°). That is 99° 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 1.16 t of CO₂e each way, counting non-CO₂ warming.

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

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

PEK

## Beijing Capital

Beijing, China · Asia

40.1°N, 116.6°E

[PEK airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/pek) [Flights to Beijing →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/beijing)

## London to Beijing, asked and answered

**How far is London to Beijing?**
London to Beijing (LHR to PEK) is 8,154 km, or 5,067 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.

**How long is the flight from London to Beijing?**
About 10h 38m 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 Beijing flight take?**
The great circle passes over United Kingdom, then 550 km of open water, then Denmark, then Sweden, then Finland, then Russia, then Mongolia, then China. It reaches 63.7°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 → BLR London to Bangalore 8,046 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-blr) [LHR → MLE London to Malé 8,539 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-mle) [MUC → PEK Munich to Beijing 7,722 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/muc-to-pek) [LHR → SEA London to Seattle 7,702 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-sea) [LHR → SFO London to San Francisco 8,616 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-sfo) [LHR → DFW London to Dallas-Fort Worth 7,627 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-dfw)

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