Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Shannon (County Clare), Ireland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Shannon Airport (SNN), Shannon (County Clare), Ireland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,585 miles (or 7,380 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Shannon 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Shannon 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• Webb AFB was turned over to the General Services Agency for disposal on 1 January 1978 and the property later turned over to the Big Spring Industrial Park.
• In 1956, the Air Defense Command 331st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was transferred to Webb from Stewart Air Force Base in New York to defend the southern United States border on air intercept missions as part of the Central Air Defense Force.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
• At Webb AFB, the last two pilot training classes completed course work on 30 August 1977, and fixed wing qualification training ended on 1 September 1977.
• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• By 1960, the consolidated pilot training program meant the consolidation of preflight, primary, and basic instruction into one school.
• Construction of the Army Air Forces Bombardier School began on 15 May 1942, and the airfield received its first class of cadets on 16 September 1942.
• The base was declared surplus and was turned over to the War Assets Administration after being closed.

Facts about Shannon Airport (SNN):

• When World War II ended, the airport was ready to be used by the many new post-war commercial airlines of Europe and North America.
• Shannon Airport handled 1,400,032 passengers last year.
• Because of Shannon Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Shannon Airport 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 closest airport to Shannon Airport (SNN) is Inisheer Aerodrome (INQ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) NW of SNN.
• The longest runway in Ireland, at 3,199 metres, is located at Shannon.
• In addition to being known as "Shannon Airport", another name for SNN is "Aerfort na Sionainne".
• Shannon holds an important place in Ireland's aviation history as it was the first transatlantic gateway between Ireland and the US, and the birthplace of Duty-free shopping and of aviation leasing.
• The furthest airport from Shannon Airport (SNN) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Shannon Airport (meaning Shannon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,015 miles (19,336 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• US Airways operated daily services to Philadelphia until 2008 using Boeing 757-200 aircraft.
• In March 2013, the new company appointed Neil Pakey as its first CEO.
• In 1958, the Irish airline Aer Lingus began transatlantic service to the United States, using Lockheed Super Constellations for thrice-weekly service to New York City and Boston.
• Shannon Airport (SNN) currently has only 1 runway.