Nonstop flight route between Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wainwright Airport (AIN), Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE), West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,770 miles (or 6,067 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 Wainwright Airport and Columbia Metropolitan 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 Wainwright Airport and Columbia Metropolitan 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 Wainwright Airport (AIN):

• The radar station was upgraded in the late 1980s with new radars and in 1989 was re-designated part of the North Warning System as a Long Range Radar Site, A-16, controlled by the Pacific Air Forces 611th Air Support Group, based at Elmendorf AFB.
• The LRR site was inactivated in 2007 due to soil erosion and budget concerns.
• The closest airport to Wainwright Airport (AIN) is Atqasuk Edward Burnell Sr. Memorial Airport (ATK), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) E of AIN.
• Wainwright Airport (AIN) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Wainwright Airport", another name for AIN is "AWI".
• Wainwright Airport resides at elevation of 45 feet above mean sea level.
• Because of Wainwright Airport's relatively low elevation of 45 feet, planes can take off or land at Wainwright 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 Wainwright Airport (AIN) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,348 miles (16,654 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.

Facts about Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE):

• Training at Columbia Army Air Base was phased down during the summer of 1945.
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) has 2 runways.
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport handled 1,027,699 passengers last year.
• One of the earliest units to train at Columbia AAB was the 17th Bombardment Group, which arrived on 9 February 1942.
• The closest airport to Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport (CUB), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) ENE of CAE.
• Passenger service is provided by five scheduled airlines, with commercial cargo service being handled by three scheduled airlines and numerous air freight operators.
• Because of Columbia Metropolitan Airport's relatively low elevation of 236 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Metropolitan 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,508 miles (18,520 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In November 1982, Piedmont Airlines returned to Columbia with flights to Charlotte and later Newark.