- Great circle
- 2,126 km
- 1,321 mi
- Estimated in the air
- 3h 09m
- block time
- Furthest from equator
- 43.5°S
- at 100% along
- One lap of Earth
- 5.3%
- of 40,075 km
Of the 292 routes catalogued here, this is the 194th longest.
What the aircraft actually flies over
From Sydney the path crosses 1,956 km of open water, then New Zealand.
The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 43.5°S, 100% 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.
Leaving Sydney the aircraft points south-east (126°); it arrives into Christchurch heading south-east (113°). That is 13° of drift without a single turn — the compass moves because the path is a curve on a sphere, not because the aircraft does.
SYD
Sydney Kingsford Smith
Sydney, Australia · Oceania
33.9°S, 151.2°E
Sydney to Christchurch, asked and answered
- How far is Sydney to Christchurch?
- Sydney to Christchurch (SYD to CHC) is 2,126 km, or 1,321 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.
- How long is the flight from Sydney to Christchurch?
- About 3h 09m 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 Sydney to Christchurch flight take?
- The great circle passes over 1,956 km of open water, then New Zealand. It reaches 43.5°S 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.
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.