Nonstop flight route between Wichita, Kansas, United States and Tau, American Samoa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB), Wichita, Kansas, United States and Tau Airport (TAV), Tau, American Samoa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,885 miles (or 9,471 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Tau 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Tau Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB):

• On 6 October 1941, the unit was ordered to extended active duty and remained an integral part of the United States Army Air Corps until 6 October 1945, with duty assignments in Tennessee and Okinawa.
• The furthest airport from McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,740 miles (17,285 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• A lease between the federal government and the city was concluded and on 1 March 1942, the AAF Materiel Center, Midwestern Procurement District was established at Wichita Army Airfield.
• The closest airport to McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Cessna Aircraft Field (CEA), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) NNE of IAB.
• The Boeing B-47 Stratojet was the first swept-winged jet bomber built in quantity for any air force, and was the mainstay of the medium-bombing strength of the Strategic Air Command all throughout the 1950s.
• In spite of the difficulty of building an installation and initiating an entirely new program simultaneously, the base developed into a highly specialized training center.
• However, the name was changed to McConnell Air Force Base after less than a year in honor of Wichita brothers Fred and Thomas McConnell, both Air Force pilots and World War II veterans.
• On 1 March 1962, Strategic Air Command stood up the 381st Strategic Missile Wing.
• In addition to being known as "McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield", another name for IAB is "McConnell AFB".

Facts about Tau Airport (TAV):

• Tau Airport (TAV) currently has only 1 runway.
• Tau Airport previously covered an area of 4 acres which contains one runway measuring 2,170 x 100 ft.
• Tau Airport is a privately owned, private-use airport located one mile southeast of the village of Ta‘ū on the island of Ta‘ū in American Samoa, an unincorporated territory of the United States.
• In addition to being known as "Tau Airport", other names for TAV include "none" and "HI36".
• The furthest airport from Tau Airport (TAV) is Zinder Airport (ZND), which is nearly antipodal to Tau Airport (meaning Tau Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Zinder Airport), and is located 12,331 miles (19,845 kilometers) away in Zinder, Niger.
• The closest airport to Tau Airport (TAV) is Fitiuta Airport (FTI), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) E of TAV.
• Because of Tau Airport's relatively low elevation of 185 feet, planes can take off or land at Tau 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.