Nonstop flight route between Sidi Bel Abbès, Algeria and Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW), Sidi Bel Abbès, Algeria and Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,314 miles (or 5,333 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 Sidi Bel Abbès Airport and Shearwater Heliport, 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 Sidi Bel Abbès Airport and Shearwater Heliport. 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 Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW):

• The closest airport to Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) is Oran Tafaraoui Airport (TAF), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) N of BFW.
• The furthest airport from Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) is Great Barrier Aerodrome (GBZ), which is nearly antipodal to Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (meaning Sidi Bel Abbès Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Great Barrier Aerodrome), and is located 12,204 miles (19,641 kilometers) away in Great Barrier Island, New Zealand.
• Sidi Bel Abbès Airport (BFW) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater Heliport 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 furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• Organizers of the "Nova Scotia International Air Show" continued to make use the Shearwater airfield for both ground displays and the air show component until 2002.
• Shearwater is the second-oldest military aerodrome in Canada.
• Following a base rationalization program in the mid-1990s, the Canadian Forces closed CFB Shearwater as a separate formation and realigned the property's various facilities into CFB Halifax.
• In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• The February 1, 1968 unification of the three service branches into the Canadian Forces saw HMCS Shearwater change its name to Canadian Forces Base Shearwater.
• 12 Wing's squadrons at Shearwater Heliport in Nova Scotia and at Patricia Bay in British Columbia currently operate the Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King but is expected to re-equip with the Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone commencing in 2012 with the conclusion of the Maritime Helicopter Project.
• Post-war, 1948, the Royal Canadian Navy took over the facility, naming it HMCS Shearwater, also known as Royal Canadian Naval Air Station Shearwater.