Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Ube, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ), Ube, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,722 miles (or 10,818 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 Yamaguchi Ube 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 Yamaguchi Ube 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):

• 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.
• 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 the mid-1970s, the end of the Vietnam War, the associated financial costs of that conflict and related cuts in USAF force structure and future defense budgets meant a marked decrease in the need for Air Force pilots.
• The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.
• 3560th Pilot Training Wing
• The base was declared surplus and was turned over to the War Assets Administration after being closed.

Facts about Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ):

• In addition to being known as "Yamaguchi Ube Airport", other names for UBJ include "山口宇部空港" and "Yamaguchi Ube Kūkō".
• The furthest airport from Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Yamaguchi Ube Airport (meaning Yamaguchi Ube Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,200 miles (19,634 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Because of Yamaguchi Ube Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Yamaguchi Ube 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.
• Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ) is Kokura Airport (KKJ), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) WSW of UBJ.