Nonstop flight route between West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States and Bethel, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE), West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States and Bethel Airport (BET), Bethel, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,901 miles (or 6,278 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Bethel 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Bethel 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE):

• Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,508 miles (18,520 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport (CUB), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) ENE of CAE.
• Passenger service was begun by Delta Air Lines which has served Columbia for over 70 years.
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport handled 1,027,699 passengers last year.
• In 1941 the airport came under formal military control and an immediate program began to turn the civil airport into a military airfield.
• Because of Columbia Metropolitan Airport's relatively low elevation of 236 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Metropolitan 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.
• One of the earliest units to train at Columbia AAB was the 17th Bombardment Group, which arrived on 9 February 1942.
• Passenger service is provided by five scheduled airlines, with commercial cargo service being handled by three scheduled airlines and numerous air freight operators.

Facts about Bethel Airport (BET):

• In addition to being known as "Bethel Airport", other names for BET include "(former Bethel Air Base)" and "(former Todd Army Airfield)".
• The furthest airport from Bethel Airport (BET) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,584 miles (17,034 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• Bethel Airport is a state owned, public use airport located three nautical miles southwest of the central business district of Bethel, a city in the Bethel Census Area of the U.S.
• Bethel Airport (BET) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Bethel Airport (BET) is Bethel Seaplane Base (JBT), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) E of BET.
• Because of Bethel Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Bethel 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.