Nonstop flight route between Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from YSM to BUA:
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- About this route
- YSM Airport Information
- BUA Airport Information
- Facts about YSM
- Facts about BUA
- Map of Nearest Airports to YSM
- List of Nearest Airports to YSM
- Map of Furthest Airports from YSM
- List of Furthest Airports from YSM
- Map of Nearest Airports to BUA
- List of Nearest Airports to BUA
- Map of Furthest Airports from BUA
- List of Furthest Airports from BUA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fort Smith Airport (YSM), Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,659 miles (or 10,717 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 Fort Smith Airport and Buka Island 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 Fort Smith Airport and Buka Island Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | YSM / CYSM |
Airport Name: | Fort Smith Airport |
Location: | Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 60°1'13"N by 111°57'42"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of the Northwest Territories |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 673 feet (205 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from YSM |
More Information: | YSM Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BUA / AYBK |
Airport Name: | Buka Island Airport |
Location: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 5°25'19"S by 154°40'21"E |
Area Served: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
Operator/Owner: | Government |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 11 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BUA |
More Information: | BUA Maps & Info |
Facts about Fort Smith Airport (YSM):
- The furthest airport from Fort Smith Airport (YSM) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 9,839 miles (15,834 kilometers) away in Port Alfred, South Africa.
- Fort Smith Airport (YSM) has 2 runways.
- Because of Fort Smith Airport's relatively low elevation of 673 feet, planes can take off or land at Fort Smith 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 closest airport to Fort Smith Airport (YSM) is Fort Chipewyan Airport (YPY), which is located 92 miles (147 kilometers) SSE of YSM.
Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):
- In January 1944, the Allies drove the Japanese out of Buka, and the airfield was used for operations against the Japanese over New Guinea.
- Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island 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.
- Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
- On 13 May 1943 Allied reconnaissance observed 36 fighters and 6 bombers at the airstrip.
- The furthest airport from Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
- The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
- The origins of the airfield begin in 1941 when Australian troops built gun pits around a primitive airstrip in December 1941.