Nonstop flight route between Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Shelton, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from TBU to SHN:
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- About this route
- TBU Airport Information
- SHN Airport Information
- Facts about TBU
- Facts about SHN
- Map of Nearest Airports to TBU
- List of Nearest Airports to TBU
- Map of Furthest Airports from TBU
- List of Furthest Airports from TBU
- Map of Nearest Airports to SHN
- List of Nearest Airports to SHN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SHN
- List of Furthest Airports from SHN
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Sanderson Field (SHN), Shelton, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,728 miles (or 9,218 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Sanderson Field, 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Sanderson Field. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | TBU / NFTF |
Airport Name: | Fuaʻamotu International Airport |
Location: | Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga |
GPS Coordinates: | 21°14'27"S by 175°8'57"W |
Area Served: | Nukuʻalofa, Tonga |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 126 feet (38 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from TBU |
More Information: | TBU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SHN / KSHN |
Airport Name: | Sanderson Field |
Location: | Shelton, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°14'0"N by 123°8'50"W |
Area Served: | Shelton, Washington |
Operator/Owner: | Port of Shelton |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 273 feet (83 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SHN |
More Information: | SHN Maps & Info |
Facts about Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU):
- Because of Fuaʻamotu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Fuaʻamotu 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.
- Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) has 2 runways.
- Under Tongan law, Fuaʻamotu International Airport is closed on Sundays — only to be opened in distress, after the minister's approval.
- The closest airport to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Lifuka Island Airport (HPA), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NNE of TBU.
- Some short-haul international flights such as to Fiji or American Samoa also operate from Vavaʻu Island's Lupepauʻu Airport from time to time.
- The furthest airport from Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (TMR), which is nearly antipodal to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (meaning Fuaʻamotu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Tamanrasset, Algeria.
- It is the strength of the runway rather than the length that restricts operations from Fuaʻamotu.
Facts about Sanderson Field (SHN):
- The closest airport to Sanderson Field (SHN) is Olympia Regional Airport (OLM), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSE of SHN.
- Sanderson Field (SHN) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Sanderson Field's relatively low elevation of 273 feet, planes can take off or land at Sanderson Field 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 Sanderson Field (SHN) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,810 miles (17,397 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Sanderson Field covers an area of 1,054 acres at an elevation of 273 feet above mean sea level.