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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea and Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field (HMT), Hemet, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,329 miles (or 10,186 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 Buka Island Airport and Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field, 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 Buka Island Airport and Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field. 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.

Facts about Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field (HMT):

• The furthest airport from Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field (HMT) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,471 miles (18,460 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field (HMT) is Banning Municipal Airport (BNG), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NE of HMT.
• Hemet-Ryan AirportRyan Field (HMT) has 2 runways.
• From the beginning of Ryan Air Attack Base, Cal Fire and the USFS used privately owned contracted World War II vintage aircraft.
• Flight training was performed with PT-17 Stearmans as the primary trainer, along with Ryan PT-21 Recruits.
• Apart from hosting Cal Fire air attack operations, the Hemet-Ryan is also home to a Riverside County Sheriff's Department aviation unit.