Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Tucson, Arizona, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), Tucson, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,093 miles (or 8,197 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 Wake Island Airfield and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, 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 Wake Island Airfield and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base. 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 Wake Island Airfield (AWK):

• Because of Wake Island Airfield's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at Wake Island Airfield 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 Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
• On 31 August 2006, the super typhoon Ioke struck Wake Island.
• Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is located 11,652 miles (18,752 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
• Japan Airlines used both Wake Island and Honolulu as stops on its initial Tokyo-San Francisco service using Douglas DC-6s in the mid-1950s.
• On 26 December 1940, implementing the Hepburn Board's recommendations, a pioneer party of 80 men and 2,000 short tons of equipment sailed for Wake Island from Oahu.

Facts about Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA):

• In 1962, the Strategic Air Command's 390th Strategic Missile Wing and its 18 Titan II ICBM sites around Tucson were activated.
• The furthest airport from Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,508 miles (18,521 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• On 1 September 1982, the headquarters of the 602nd Tactical Air Control Wing and its subordinate 23rd Tactical Air Support Squadron, a unit responsible for the Air Force's tactical air control system west of the Mississippi River transferred from Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, and stood up at D-M, bringing 16 OA-37B aircraft and numerous new personnel to the base.
• Two other major tenants, the 563rd Rescue Group and 943rd Rescue Group, are tasked to provide combat search and rescue support worldwide.
• With the end of the war, operations at the base came to a virtual standstill.
• Other military activities and federal agencies using the base include Navy Operational Support Center Tucson, a detachment of the Naval Air Systems Command, the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S.
• The closest airport to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Tucson International Airport (TUS), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SW of DMA.