ET338 distance and great-circle path
ET338 covers 11,563 km, or 7,185 miles. That makes it an ultra-long-haul flight, near the limit of what most twinjets can fly non-stop. Of the 439 routes we track, it ranks 39 by distance.
The plane leaves Addis Ababa heading north-west. On the map above, the line looks curved. That is normal. The shortest path over a round planet never looks straight on a flat screen. Our guide explains how the ADD-IAD route appears on a tracker map.
Why ET338 block time differs from cruise time
The schedule allows 16.2 hours from gate to gate. That works out to about 712 km/h. A Boeing 777-300ER cruises faster than that. The gap is taxi time, climbing, descending and holding.
Flying west, this route pushes against the wind. The trip back east is usually shorter, even though the distance is the same. See how timing changes the trip in our red-eye flight guide.
Can the Boeing 777-300ER comfortably fly ET338?
Not really. It uses about 85% of the Boeing 777-300ER's range. That leaves room for a full load of passengers and bags. The full numbers are on our aircraft page for the Boeing 777-300ER.
What to know about ET338
- Time change: you land 7 hours behind the time you left. That is enough to cause jet lag. Here is how pilots handle it.
- High airport at the start: ADD sits 7,656 ft up. Thin air means a longer takeoff run.