Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from AWK to SPA:
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- About this route
- AWK Airport Information
- SPA Airport Information
- Facts about AWK
- Facts about SPA
- 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 SPA
- List of Nearest Airports to SPA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPA
- List of Furthest Airports from SPA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA), Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,589 miles (or 10,604 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 Spartanburg Downtown Memorial 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 Spartanburg Downtown Memorial 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: | SPA / KSPA |
Airport Name: | Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport |
Location: | Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°54'56"N by 81°57'23"W |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 801 feet (244 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SPA |
More Information: | SPA Maps & Info |
Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):
- Another airline that operated into Wake Island was Philippine Airlines with Douglas DC-8 jetliners on a daily westbound service from San Francisco and Honolulu to Manila during the early 1970s.
- Japan Airlines used both Wake Island and Honolulu as stops on its initial Tokyo-San Francisco service using Douglas DC-6s in the mid-1950s.
- 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.
- 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 closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- 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.
- On 31 August 2006, the super typhoon Ioke struck Wake Island.
Facts about Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA):
- An FAA operated air traffic control tower was operational at the airport but closed in 1981 during the PATCO controllers strike.
- The Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport contributes $15.4 million to the local economy.
- Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA) currently has only 1 runway.
- During World War II the airport was a training facility for the United States Army Air Corp and a refueling stop for naval aviators.
- The closest airport to Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA) is Greenville–Spartanburg International Airport (GSP), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) W of SPA.
- The airport once had three intersecting runways with a parallel taxiway system that connected them to the aircraft parking apron.
- The furthest airport from Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,463 miles (18,449 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport's relatively low elevation of 801 feet, planes can take off or land at Spartanburg Downtown Memorial 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.