Nonstop flight route between Blythe, California, United States and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Blythe Airport (BLH), Blythe, California, United States and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,461 miles (or 10,398 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 Blythe Airport and Buka Island 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 Blythe Airport and Buka Island 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 Blythe Airport (BLH):

• The furthest airport from Blythe Airport (BLH) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,472 miles (18,462 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• At its peak in December, 1943 the base had a population just short of 8000 uniformed and civilian personnel.
• The closest airport to Blythe Airport (BLH) is Laguna Army Airfield (LGF), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) SSE of BLH.
• In addition to being known as "Blythe Airport", another name for BLH is "(former Blythe Army Air Field)".
• Blythe Airport covers 3,904 acres at an elevation of 399 feet.
• Blythe was served by Bonanza Air Lines with Fairchild F-27s to Los Angeles, Phoenix, Tucson and other cities.
• Because of Blythe Airport's relatively low elevation of 399 feet, planes can take off or land at Blythe 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.
• In addition to the main facility at Blythe, several auxiliary airfields were built.
• Blythe Airport (BLH) has 2 runways.
• Blythe Airport is seven miles west of Blythe, in Riverside County, California.

Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):

• The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
• Today the airport is the primary air portal into Bougainville, and even 60 years after the war, wreckage from the military use of the airfield by the Japanese and Americans is easily found in the area.
• Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island 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.
• It is located at the southern end of the island, near Buka Passage behind the town of Buka, and pre-war Chinatown.
• On 13 May 1943 Allied reconnaissance observed 36 fighters and 6 bombers at the airstrip.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
• The origins of the airfield begin in 1941 when Australian troops built gun pits around a primitive airstrip in December 1941.