Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Florence, Italy:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR), Florence, Italy would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,808 miles (or 12,566 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 Florence Airport, Peretola, 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 Florence Airport, Peretola. 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):

• 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.
• The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
• Another airline that operated into Wake Island was Philippine Airlines with Douglas DC-8 jetliners on a daily westbound service from San Francisco and Honolulu to Manila during the early 1970s.
• 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.
• From 1935 until 1940, when two typhoons swept Wake with resultant extensive damage to the now elaborately developed Pan American facilities, development and use of the base were steady but uneventful.
• 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.
• Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
• British Overseas Airways Corporation also used Wake Island as a refueling stop.

Facts about Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR):

• In late 1999 projects for restructuring and enlargement began, involving the departures and arrivals terminals, the aircraft parking areas and other areas dedicated to the operational and commercial management of the airport.
• The furthest airport from Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Florence Airport, Peretola (meaning Florence Airport, Peretola is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,055 miles (19,401 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Florence Airport, Peretola", another name for FLR is "Aeroporto di Firenze-Peretola".
• It is a small airport, with a single runway and the main taxiway is situated at the end of runway 05, with an overshoot/holding area at the end of runway 23.
• On December 5, 2012 Vueling has announced the opening of a new base of operations from which to fly to Florence to several destinations in Europe.
• The closest airport to Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR) is Siena-Ampugnano Airport (SAY), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) S of FLR.
• Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Florence Airport, Peretola's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Florence Airport, Peretola 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.