Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Saül, French Guiana:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from AWK to XAU:
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- About this route
- AWK Airport Information
- XAU Airport Information
- Facts about AWK
- Facts about XAU
- 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 XAU
- List of Nearest Airports to XAU
- Map of Furthest Airports from XAU
- List of Furthest Airports from XAU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Saül Airport (XAU), Saül, French Guiana would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,302 miles (or 14,970 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 Saül 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 Saül 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: | XAU / SOOS |
Airport Name: | Saül Airport |
Location: | Saül, French Guiana |
GPS Coordinates: | 3°36'48"N by 53°12'15"W |
Area Served: | Saül, French Guiana |
Operator/Owner: | Conseil Général de la Guyane |
Elevation: | 735 feet (224 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from XAU |
More Information: | XAU Maps & Info |
Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):
- On 31 August 2006, the super typhoon Ioke struck Wake Island.
- 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.
- Between 5 and 29 May 1935, Pan American's air base construction vessel, North Haven, landed supplies and equipment on Wilkes Island for eventual rehandling to Peale Island which, because of its more suitable soil and geology, had been selected as site for the PAA seaplane base.
- The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
- British Overseas Airways Corporation also used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
- 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.
Facts about Saül Airport (XAU):
- Saül Airport (XAU) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Saül Airport's relatively low elevation of 735 feet, planes can take off or land at Saül 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.
- The furthest airport from Saül Airport (XAU) is Namrole Airport (NRE), which is nearly antipodal to Saül Airport (meaning Saül Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Namrole Airport), and is located 12,419 miles (19,986 kilometers) away in Buru, Indonesia.
- The closest airport to Saül Airport (XAU) is Maripasoula Airport (MPY), which is located 58 miles (93 kilometers) W of XAU.