Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Waterford, Ireland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Waterford Airport (WAT), Waterford, Ireland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,671 miles (or 7,517 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 Waterford 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 Waterford 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):

• Perhaps the most dominant feature on the ATC landscape in 1974 was the serious fuel shortage the command had to contend with for much of the year.
• 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.
• Instruction of the first class began in April 1952.
• 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 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 facility first was used by the United States Army Air Forces as Big Spring Army Air Field, opening on 28 April 1942 as part of the Central Flying Training Command.
• The airfield was activated as Big Spring Air Force Base on 1 October 1951 by the United States Air Force Air Training Command and established the 3560th Pilot Training Wing.
• 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.

Facts about Waterford Airport (WAT):

• Waterford Airport handled 8,000 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Waterford Airport", another name for WAT is "Aerfort Phort Láirge".
• The fully upgraded and remodelled connecting regional road, R708, from Waterford city to the airport was completed in early July 2008, reducing the journey time from Waterford city centre to the airport to 10 minutes at off peak times and from the outer ring road, R470, to the airport to 5 minutes.
• Because of Waterford Airport's relatively low elevation of 119 feet, planes can take off or land at Waterford 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 furthest airport from Waterford Airport (WAT) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Waterford Airport (meaning Waterford Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,013 miles (19,333 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• On 12 August 2013 it was reported that a 150m extension of the runway would be funded by the Department of Transport of up to €400,000.
• The closest airport to Waterford Airport (WAT) is Kilkenny Airport (KKY), which is located 33 miles (53 kilometers) NNW of WAT.
• In 2006 Waterford Airport celebrated 21 years of scheduled operations.