Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Gabbs, Nevada, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from AWK to GAB:
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- About this route
- AWK Airport Information
- GAB Airport Information
- Facts about AWK
- Facts about GAB
- Map of Nearest Airports to AWK
- List of Nearest Airports to AWK
- Map of Furthest Airports from AWK
- List of Furthest Airports from AWK
- Map of Nearest Airports to GAB
- List of Nearest Airports to GAB
- Map of Furthest Airports from GAB
- List of Furthest Airports from GAB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Gabbs Airport (GAB), Gabbs, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,622 miles (or 7,438 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 Gabbs 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 Wake Island Airfield and Gabbs Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | AWK / PWAK |
| Airport Name: | Wake Island Airfield |
| Location: | Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands |
| GPS Coordinates: | 19°16'56"N by 166°38'12"E |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 23 feet (7 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from AWK |
| More Information: | AWK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GAB / KGAB |
| Airport Name: | Gabbs Airport |
| Location: | Gabbs, Nevada, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 38°55'27"N by 117°57'32"W |
| Area Served: | Gabbs, Nevada |
| Operator/Owner: | Nye County |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 4700 feet (1,433 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GAB |
| More Information: | GAB Maps & Info |
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.
- On 31 August 2006, the super typhoon Ioke struck Wake Island.
- The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- 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.
- British Overseas Airways Corporation also used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
- The first intention to build an air base surfaced in 1935, when Pan American World Airways selected Wake Island as an intermediate support base for their routes to the Far East, especially the Philippines.
Facts about Gabbs Airport (GAB):
- Because of Gabbs Airport's high elevation of 4,700 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GAB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GAB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Gabbs Airport (GAB) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Gabbs Airport (GAB) is Hawthorne Industrial Airport (HTH), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) SW of GAB.
- The furthest airport from Gabbs Airport (GAB) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,159 miles (17,959 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
