Nonstop flight route between Abau, Papua New Guinea and Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from ABW to MSL:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- ABW Airport Information
- MSL Airport Information
- Facts about ABW
- Facts about MSL
- Map of Nearest Airports to ABW
- List of Nearest Airports to ABW
- Map of Furthest Airports from ABW
- List of Furthest Airports from ABW
- Map of Nearest Airports to MSL
- List of Nearest Airports to MSL
- Map of Furthest Airports from MSL
- List of Furthest Airports from MSL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Abau Airport (ABW), Abau, Papua New Guinea and Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL), Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,520 miles (or 13,712 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 Abau Airport and Northwest Alabama Regional 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 Abau Airport and Northwest Alabama Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ABW / |
Airport Name: | Abau Airport |
Location: | Abau, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 10°10'1"S by 148°41'59"E |
Elevation: | 10 feet (3 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from ABW |
More Information: | ABW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MSL / KMSL |
Airport Name: | Northwest Alabama Regional Airport |
Location: | Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°44'43"N by 87°36'37"W |
Area Served: | Muscle Shoals, Alabama |
Operator/Owner: | Colbert & Lauderdale Counties |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 551 feet (168 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from MSL |
More Information: | MSL Maps & Info |
Facts about Abau Airport (ABW):
- The furthest airport from Abau Airport (ABW) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,873 miles (19,108 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
- Because of Abau Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Abau 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 Abau Airport (ABW) is Agaun Airport (AUP), which is located 49 miles (80 kilometers) ENE of ABW.
Facts about Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL):
- Currently, Muscle Shoals is served by Silver Airways with two daily flights to Atlanta.
- As per the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 5,061 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 6,897 in 2009, and 8,680 in 2010.
- Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) has 2 runways.
- Because of Northwest Alabama Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 551 feet, planes can take off or land at Northwest Alabama Regional 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 Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) is Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of MSL.
- The airport was opened in February 1940, however in 1942 it was taken over by the United States Army Air Forces as a World War II pilot training military airfield.
- Pilot training at the airfield apparently ended on May 30, 1944, with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program.
- The furthest airport from Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,143 miles (17,932 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.