MODO AVIÓN

Chengdu to Buenos Aires flight path

CTU → AEPCTUAEP
The shortest path on the sphere. On a flat map it looks curved; on the globe it is a straight line.

Along the shortest route, the flight from Chengdu to Buenos Aires covers 11,370 miles (18,310 km) — about 21 h 30 min with no wind. It passes over or close to People's Republic of China, India, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, Uruguay and Argentina. It crosses the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean: 64% of the route is over water. Today you leave on UTC+8 and land on UTC−3.

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From Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) to Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (AEP) · CTU · AEP

CTUChengdu
AEPBuenos Aires
Great-circle distance
18,310 km
Duration, no wind
21 h 30 min
Over water
64 %
Time difference today
−11 h

The route drawn is the theoretical one — the shortest path on the sphere. The real aircraft follows airways, avoids storms and closed airspace, and rides the wind: it can be hundreds of kilometres off.

What countries do you fly over from Chengdu to Buenos Aires?

  • People's Republic of China
  • India
  • Bangladesh
  • Tanzania
  • Malawi
  • Zambia
  • Botswana
  • Namibia
  • Uruguay
  • Argentina
  • Arabian Sea
  • Indian Ocean
  • Atlantic Ocean
  • Río de la Plata

Which side of the plane to sit on to see Mount Gongga

To see Mount Gongga (7,556 m), sit on the left: it lies about 32 km from the route, ≈ 30 min into the flight.

Left window
  • Mount Gongga (7,556 m) ≈ 30 min
  • Hkakabo Razi (5,881 m) ≈ 1 h 00 min
  • Jamshedpur ≈ 2 h 30 min
  • Sholapur ≈ 3 h 55 min
  • Lusaka ≈ 11 h 15 min
  • Montevideo ≈ 21 h 05 min
Right window
  • Bairiga (6,882 m) ≈ 1 h 05 min
  • Guwahati ≈ 1 h 45 min
  • Rangpur ≈ 2 h 00 min
  • Dhanbad ≈ 2 h 25 min
  • Ranchi ≈ 2 h 35 min
  • Raipur ≈ 3 h 05 min
  • Dar es Salaam ≈ 9 h 30 min
  • Kimhandu (2,653 m) ≈ 9 h 40 min
  • Brandberg (2,579 m) ≈ 13 h 00 min

Left and right facing forward, on the theoretical route. Times are from take-off, with no wind.

Leg by leg

2 h4 h6 h8 h10 h12 h14 h16 h18 h20 hUTC+5:30UTC+6UTC+5:30UTC+3UTC+2UTC−3UTC+8Arabian SeaAtlantic OceanSichuan BasinChota Nagpur PlateauGreat Rift ValleyKhomas HighlandKimhandu 2,653 m 101 kmBrandberg 2,579 m 110 kmDar es Salaam 21 kmLusaka 92 kmJamshedpur 71 kmMontevideo 4 kmDhanbad 15 kmRanchi 24 kmRangpur 78 kmRaipur 2 kmSholapur 34 kmCTUAEP▲ Left window▼ Right window◀ Left windowRight window ▶2 h4 h6 h8 h10 h12 h14 h16 h18 h20 hUTC+5:30UTC+6UTC+5:30UTC+3UTC+2UTC−3Arabian SeaAtlantic OceanSichuan BasinIndian subcontinentGreat Rift ValleyKalahari DesertMount Gongga7,556 m · 32 kmHkakabo Razi5,881 m · 5 kmJamshedpur71 km off routeSholapur34 km off routeLusaka92 km off routeMontevideo4 km off routeBairiga6,882 m · 112 kmGuwahati12 km off routeRangpur78 km off routeDhanbad15 km off routeRanchi24 km off routeRaipur2 km off routeDar es Salaam21 km off routeKimhandu2,653 m · 101 kmBrandberg2,579 m · 110 kmCTUAEPUTC+8

LandWaterCity, with its distance from the routePeakClock change

See the full list, leg by leg
  1. Take-off from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport
  2. Below: Sichuan Basin0 km · ≈ 15 min into the flight
  3. Below: Tibetan Plateau122 km · ≈ 25 min into the flight
  4. Mount Gongga, 7,556 m — on the left, 32 km away224 km · ≈ 30 min into the flight
  5. Hkakabo Razi, 5,881 m — on the left, 5 km away668 km · ≈ 1 h 00 min into the flight
  6. Bairiga, 6,882 m — on the right, 112 km away705 km · ≈ 1 h 05 min into the flight
  7. Local time below changes: UTC+8 to UTC+5:30732 km · ≈ 1 h 05 min into the flight
  8. Below: Khasi Hills1,280 km · ≈ 1 h 45 min into the flight
  9. Guwahati, India — on the right, 12 km away1,290 km · ≈ 1 h 45 min into the flight
  10. Below: Indian subcontinent1,460 km · ≈ 1 h 55 min into the flight
  11. Below: Indo-Gangetic Plain1,530 km · ≈ 2 h 00 min into the flight
  12. Local time below changes: UTC+5:30 to UTC+61,530 km · ≈ 2 h 00 min into the flight
  13. Rangpur, Bangladesh — on the right, 78 km away1,530 km · ≈ 2 h 00 min into the flight
  14. Local time below changes: UTC+6 to UTC+5:301,710 km · ≈ 2 h 15 min into the flight
  15. Dhanbad, India — on the right, 15 km away1,890 km · ≈ 2 h 25 min into the flight
  16. Below: Chota Nagpur Plateau1,950 km · ≈ 2 h 30 min into the flight
  17. Jamshedpur, India — on the left, 71 km away1,960 km · ≈ 2 h 30 min into the flight
  18. Ranchi, India — on the right, 24 km away2,010 km · ≈ 2 h 35 min into the flight
  19. Raipur, India — on the right, 2 km away2,450 km · ≈ 3 h 05 min into the flight
  20. Below: Deccan Plateau2,810 km · ≈ 3 h 30 min into the flight
  21. Sholapur, India — on the left, 34 km away3,170 km · ≈ 3 h 55 min into the flight
  22. Below: Western Ghats3,360 km · ≈ 4 h 05 min into the flight
  23. Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean — 4,580 km without land3,480 km · ≈ 4 h 15 min into the flight
  24. Local time below changes: UTC+5:30 to UTC+37,990 km · ≈ 9 h 25 min into the flight
  25. Dar es Salaam, Tanzania — on the right, 21 km away8,030 km · ≈ 9 h 30 min into the flight
  26. Land again8,050 km · ≈ 9 h 30 min into the flight
  27. Kimhandu, 2,653 m — on the right, 101 km away8,200 km · ≈ 9 h 40 min into the flight
  28. Below: Great Rift Valley8,730 km · ≈ 10 h 15 min into the flight
  29. Local time below changes: UTC+3 to UTC+28,730 km · ≈ 10 h 15 min into the flight
  30. Below: Muchinga Mountains9,030 km · ≈ 10 h 40 min into the flight
  31. Below: Katanga Plateau9,210 km · ≈ 10 h 50 min into the flight
  32. Lusaka, Zambia — on the left, 92 km away9,560 km · ≈ 11 h 15 min into the flight
  33. Below: Kalahari Desert10,800 km · ≈ 12 h 40 min into the flight
  34. Below: Khomas Highland11,040 km · ≈ 12 h 55 min into the flight
  35. Brandberg, 2,579 m — on the right, 110 km away11,130 km · ≈ 13 h 00 min into the flight
  36. Below: Namib11,170 km · ≈ 13 h 05 min into the flight
  37. Atlantic Ocean and Río de la Plata — 7,080 km without land11,230 km · ≈ 13 h 10 min into the flight
  38. Local time below changes: UTC+2 to UTC−318,000 km · ≈ 20 h 55 min into the flight
  39. Montevideo, Uruguay — on the left, 4 km away18,100 km · ≈ 21 h 05 min into the flight
  40. Landing at Aeroparque Jorge Newbery18,310 km · ≈ 21 h 15 min into the flight

Times assume a typical jet speed, no wind and an on-time departure. Good for orientation, not for your watch.

Which side the sun, sunrise or sunset will be on

Enter the day and take-off time. Your phone does the maths: the sun's position on every leg of the route, relative to the nose of the aircraft.

Take-offLanding

Sky: light is daytime, amber is sunrise or sunset, dark is night. Left and Right show which side the sun is on for each leg.

Follow the route offline in airplane mode

All of this on board and with no signal: with your phone in airplane mode, Modo Avión shows where you are, what's below and how long is left. GPS still works, because it only listens to satellites.

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Arriving in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires · Photo: ProtoplasmaKid · CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Flight time and distance

About 21 h 30 min with no wind, including half an hour of taxi, climb and descent. On a long flight the wind aloft can change that by more than an hour, differently each way.

11,370 miles (18,310 km, 9,880 nautical miles) along the great circle. The real flight covers a little more because it follows airways.

Time zones you cross

kmTimeZone
0 kmUTC+8Shanghai
732 kmUTC+5:30Kolkata
1,530 kmUTC+6Dhaka
1,710 kmUTC+5:30Kolkata
7,990 kmUTC+3Dar es Salaam
8,730 kmUTC+2Blantyre
18,000 kmUTC−3Montevideo

Airspace (FIRs) along the route

Each is a control region: when the aircraft crosses the boundary, the centre talking to the pilot changes. Boundaries are approximate, from the VATSIM data set, not the official ICAO chart.

  • Kunming
  • Yangon
  • Kolkata
  • Dhaka
  • Kolkata
  • Mumbai
  • Chennai
  • Mumbai
  • Seychelles
  • Nairobi
  • Dar-Es-Salaam
  • Lilongwe
  • Lusaka
  • Windhoek
  • Gaborone
  • Windhoek
  • Johannesburg Oceanic
  • Atlantico
  • Montevideo

FAQ

Where does the plane fly from Chengdu to Buenos Aires?

Along the shortest route, the flight from Chengdu to Buenos Aires covers 11,370 miles (18,310 km) — about 21 h 30 min with no wind. It passes over or close to People's Republic of China, India, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, Uruguay and Argentina. It crosses the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean: 64% of the route is over water. Today you leave on UTC+8 and land on UTC−3.

What countries do you fly over from Chengdu to Buenos Aires?

It passes over or close to People's Republic of China, India, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, Uruguay and Argentina, and crosses the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. This is the theoretical route: the aircraft may deviate for wind or closed airspace.

How long is the flight from Chengdu to Buenos Aires?

About 21 h 30 min with no wind, including half an hour of taxi, climb and descent. On a long flight the wind aloft can change that by more than an hour, differently each way.

How far is Chengdu from Buenos Aires by plane?

11,370 miles (18,310 km, 9,880 nautical miles) along the great circle. The real flight covers a little more because it follows airways.

How much of the flight is over water?

64% of the route, about 11,650 km. The longest stretch without land is 7,080 km.

Why doesn't the plane fly in a straight line on the map?

It does fly straight — on a sphere. On a flat map the shortest path looks curved; on the globe on this page it looks like what it is.

Does GPS work in airplane mode?

Yes. GPS is a receiver: it listens to satellites and transmits nothing, so it keeps working in airplane mode. What you won't have is a map unless you downloaded it; Modo Avión carries its own.

More routes

The way back: Buenos Aires → Chengdu

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How this was calculated

The route is the great-circle arc between both airports, split into 300 points. At each point a point-in-polygon test runs against 1,102 airspace regions, 418 time zones and 1,338 physical geography regions. Countries are those with a town within 25 km of the route: in empty areas one may be missing. Cities named have over 250,000 people and lie within 110 km.

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