Nonstop flight route between Biak, Indonesia and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Frans Kaisiepo Airport (BIK), Biak, Indonesia and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,165 miles (or 14,749 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 Frans Kaisiepo Airport and Shaw Air Force Base, 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 Frans Kaisiepo Airport and Shaw Air Force Base. 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 Frans Kaisiepo Airport (BIK):

• Sorido Airfield has been disused since 1962 and is located to the northwest of Mokmer, and is clearly visible on aerial photography.
• The furthest airport from Frans Kaisiepo Airport (BIK) is Marechal Cunha Machado International Airport (Tirirical) (SLZ), which is nearly antipodal to Frans Kaisiepo Airport (meaning Frans Kaisiepo Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Marechal Cunha Machado International Airport (Tirirical)), and is located 12,175 miles (19,593 kilometers) away in São Luís, Brazil.
• Frans Kaisiepo Airport handled 366 passengers last year.
• Frans Kaisiepo Airport (BIK) currently has only 1 runway.
• There is a terminal with a Check-in Hall,a departure hall,and an arrival hall
• The closest airport to Frans Kaisiepo Airport (BIK) is Kornasoren Airport (FOO), which is located 87 miles (140 kilometers) WNW of BIK.
• Because of Frans Kaisiepo Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Frans Kaisiepo 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.
• With the advent of jet airliners such as the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8, the airport went through another modernization to start accommodating them.
• In addition to being known as "Frans Kaisiepo Airport", another name for BIK is "Bandara Frans Kaisiepo".

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The 20th FG was reassigned to Langley AFB, Virginia on 1 December 1951 in preparation for a permanent overseas deployment to RAF Wethersfield, England to support NATO.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• On March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• On 9 August 1990, the 17th and 33d TFS of 363d TFW became the first F-16 squadrons to deploy to the United Arab Emirates in Operation Desert Shield.