Nonstop flight route between Columbus, Mississippi, United States and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Columbus Air Force Base (CBM), Columbus, Mississippi, United States and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,920 miles (or 14,356 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 Columbus Air Force Base and King Shaka International, 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 Columbus Air Force Base and King Shaka International. 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 Columbus Air Force Base (CBM):

• The school used a number of trainers, including the AT-8, AT-9, AT-10, and B-25.
• In 1965 the 454th converted to B-52D, which was re-engineered for conventional bomb missions over Southeast Asia, although some B-52Cs were also assigned during 1968–69.
• In addition to being known as "Columbus Air Force Base", another name for CBM is "Columbus AFB".
• In 1992, ATC was inactivated and the 14 FTW came under the newly created Air Education and Training Command and AETC's 19th Air Force.
• The closest airport to Columbus Air Force Base (CBM) is Columbus-Lowndes County Airport (UBS), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSE of CBM.
• When the war ended in 1945, the base strength had reached a peak of 2,300 enlisted men, 300 officers, and an average of 250 pilot cadets per class.
• Columbus Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 9 miles north of Columbus, Mississippi.
• On 8 January 1943, the War Department constituted and activated the 30th Flying Training Wing at Columbus and assigned it to the AAF Eastern Flying Training Command.
• Columbus AFB has been training Air Force pilots since World War II, and that mission continues today.
• The furthest airport from Columbus Air Force Base (CBM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,088 miles (17,844 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The base began an active four-year rebuilding program to prepare the base for its new mission and to be part of SAC's base dispersal system.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• On 8 December 2009, it was reported that "King Shaka International Airport" was indeed the most popular name for the new airport.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• The Old Durban airport used to have flights to Singapore, Ethiopia, London, Egypt, Persian Gulf and India.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• King Shaka International Airport was first conceptualised in the 1970s, with construction beginning in 1973.