Nonstop flight route between Bakel, Senegal and Wichita Falls, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bakel Airport (BXE), Bakel, Senegal and Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,426 miles (or 8,732 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 Bakel Airport and Sheppard 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 Bakel Airport and Sheppard 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 Bakel Airport (BXE):

• The furthest airport from Bakel Airport (BXE) is Maewo-Naone Airport (MWF), which is nearly antipodal to Bakel Airport (meaning Bakel Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Maewo-Naone Airport), and is located 12,399 miles (19,954 kilometers) away in Maewo, Vanuatu.
• The closest airport to Bakel Airport (BXE) is Sélibaby Airport (SEY), which is located 29 miles (46 kilometers) NE of BXE.
• Bakel Airport (BXE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Bakel Airport's relatively low elevation of 98 feet, planes can take off or land at Bakel 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.

Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):

• Sheppard AFB began providing top-notch instruction in a diverse array of Air Force specialties during World War II.
• The furthest airport from Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,952 miles (17,626 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• During World War II, then-Sheppard Field conducted basic training, and it also trained glider mechanics, technical and flying training instructors and B-29 Superfortress flight engineers.
• Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located five miles north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States.
• The 3950th Technical Training Wing was designated the Sheppard Technical Training Center 1 January 1959.
• Control and accountability for Sheppard Field was transferred to the Department of the Air Force 1 August 1948 and was reactivated 15 August 1948 to supplement Lackland AFB, Texas, as a basic training center renamed as Sheppard AFB.
• In July 1969, Detachment 1, 2nd Bombardment Wing, with four B-52 aircraft, became a tenant organization at Sheppard and remained until 1975.
• In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
• The closest airport to Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Kickapoo Downtown Airport (KIP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) S of SPS.
• As of September 2013, Brigadier General Scott Kindsvater is the commander of the 82d Training Wing, and he concurrently serves as the installation commander of Sheppard AFB.
• Sheppard AFB shares one runway with Wichita Falls Municipal Airport under a joint civil-military arrangement.