Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Avarua, Cook Islands:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from AWK to RAR:
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- About this route
- AWK Airport Information
- RAR Airport Information
- Facts about AWK
- Facts about RAR
- Map of Nearest Airports to AWK
- List of Nearest Airports to AWK
- Map of Furthest Airports from AWK
- List of Furthest Airports from AWK
- Map of Nearest Airports to RAR
- List of Nearest Airports to RAR
- Map of Furthest Airports from RAR
- List of Furthest Airports from RAR
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Rarotonga International Airport (RAR), Avarua, Cook Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,602 miles (or 5,796 kilometers).
A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Wake Island Airfield and Rarotonga International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.
Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Wake Island Airfield and Rarotonga International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AWK / PWAK |
Airport Name: | Wake Island Airfield |
Location: | Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 19°16'56"N by 166°38'12"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 23 feet (7 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AWK |
More Information: | AWK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RAR / NCRG |
Airport Name: | Rarotonga International Airport |
Location: | Avarua, Cook Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 21°12'10"S by 159°48'20"W |
Area Served: | Avarua |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 19 feet (6 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from RAR |
More Information: | RAR Maps & Info |
Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):
- Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Wake Island Airfield's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at Wake Island Airfield at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- The furthest airport from Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is located 11,652 miles (18,752 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
- The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- British Overseas Airways Corporation also used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
- The first intention to build an air base surfaced in 1935, when Pan American World Airways selected Wake Island as an intermediate support base for their routes to the Far East, especially the Philippines.
Facts about Rarotonga International Airport (RAR):
- The closest airport to Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) is Mangaia Island Airport (MGS), which is located 131 miles (211 kilometers) ESE of RAR.
- Air New Zealand Airbus A320 awaiting passengers at Rarotonga International
- Because of Rarotonga International Airport's relatively low elevation of 19 feet, planes can take off or land at Rarotonga International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- Because of the close proximity of the runways to the nearby roads, it is possible to get very close to aircraft while they are landing.
- The furthest airport from Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) is Faya-Largeau Airport (FYT), which is nearly antipodal to Rarotonga International Airport (meaning Rarotonga International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Faya-Largeau Airport), and is located 12,199 miles (19,632 kilometers) away in Faya-Largeau, Chad.
- Rarotonga International Airport (RAR) currently has only 1 runway.