Nonstop flight route between Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Al Najaf, Iraq:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands and Al Najaf International Airport (NJF), Al Najaf, Iraq would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,227 miles (or 11,631 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 Al Najaf International 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 Al Najaf International 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 Wake Island Airfield (AWK):

• The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• British Overseas Airways Corporation also used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
• 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.
• 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 Al Najaf International Airport (NJF):

• The furthest airport from Al Najaf International Airport (NJF) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,820 miles (19,022 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• Al Najaf International Airport is the airport serving Najaf, Iraq, and is located on the eastern side of the city.
• Al Najaf International Airport (NJF) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Al Najaf International Airport (NJF) is Baghdad International Airport (BGW), which is located 88 miles (142 kilometers) N of NJF.
• The Najaf Governorate represented by the Deputy Governor Abd al-Husayn Abtan and Najaf Investment Commission signed a Memorandum of Agreement dated 24 June 2008 with Al-Aqeelah Holding authorizing it for one year to finalize the construction of the airport and five years subject to renewal to manage the airport.
• The construction phase comprises the construction of the VIP lounge, Arrival and Departure Halls, Taxiway, Air cargo, purchasing all airport equipments including Ground Handling Equipments, technical supplies, Navigation Aids, Dining Facilities and lodging sites for employees.