Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR), Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,927 miles (or 9,539 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 Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort, 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 Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort. 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):

• Between 5 and 29 May 1935, Pan American's air base construction vessel, North Haven, landed supplies and equipment on Wilkes Island for eventual rehandling to Peale Island which, because of its more suitable soil and geology, had been selected as site for the PAA seaplane base.
• 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.
• 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.
• On 31 August 2006, the super typhoon Ioke struck Wake Island.
• 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.
• Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.

Facts about Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR):

• Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,749 miles (18,908 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• Originally built by engineers from the Soviet Union in the 1950s, the airport serves the Afghan population north of the country.
• The closest airport to Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort (MZR) is Termez Airport (TMJ), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) N of MZR.
• In addition to being known as "Mazar-e Sharif International Airpوort", another name for MZR is "Mazar-e-Sharif Airport (Mazar-e-Sharif)".
• Mazar-i-Sharif airport was built in the 1950s by assistance from the Soviet Union during the Cold War, when the Soviets and the Americans were trying to spread their influence in the Middle East and South Asia.