Nonstop flight route between Canton Island, Kiribati and High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from CIS to HYC:
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- About this route
- CIS Airport Information
- HYC Airport Information
- Facts about CIS
- Facts about HYC
- Map of Nearest Airports to CIS
- List of Nearest Airports to CIS
- Map of Furthest Airports from CIS
- List of Furthest Airports from CIS
- Map of Nearest Airports to HYC
- List of Nearest Airports to HYC
- Map of Furthest Airports from HYC
- List of Furthest Airports from HYC
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Canton Island Airport (CIS), Canton Island, Kiribati and RAF High Wycombe (HYC), High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,017 miles (or 14,511 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 Canton Island Airport and RAF High Wycombe, 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 Canton Island Airport and RAF High Wycombe. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | CIS / PCIS |
Airport Name: | Canton Island Airport |
Location: | Canton Island, Kiribati |
GPS Coordinates: | 2°46'9"S by 171°42'19"W |
Elevation: | 9 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from CIS |
More Information: | CIS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | HYC / EGUH |
Airport Name: | RAF High Wycombe |
Location: | High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°40'53"N by 0°48'6"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from HYC |
More Information: | HYC Maps & Info |
Facts about Canton Island Airport (CIS):
- Because of Canton Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Canton 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.
- Canton Island Airport (CIS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Canton Island Airport (CIS) is Funafuti International Airport (FUN), which is located 741 miles (1,193 kilometers) WSW of CIS.
- Kanton Island airport continued to see use during the 1950s as a trans-Pacific stopover for DC-4, DC-6B and DC-7C aircraft for Pan American, British Commonwealth Pacific, Qantas and Canadian Pacific Airlines, but with the advent of long-range jet aircraft during the 1960s, their need for the island faded, and the airfield and its associated facilities were ultimately abandoned in 1965.
- During World War II, Kanton Island was considered part of the British-controlled Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony.
- The airport was used as a military airfield during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces in 1942 and 1943, initially being used by the 40th Ferrying Squadron, Ferrying Command as an airfield for moving combat aircraft to forward combat units.
- The furthest airport from Canton Island Airport (CIS) is Malabo International Airport (SSG), which is nearly antipodal to Canton Island Airport (meaning Canton Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Malabo International Airport), and is located 12,363 miles (19,896 kilometers) away in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
- Though Kanton Island was never physically invaded by Japanese forces, the airfield was bombarded on 1 November 1943 by the Japanese submarine I-36.
Facts about RAF High Wycombe (HYC):
- To preserve secrecy, the station was known as "Southdown" in March 1940, as part of a directive by the Air Ministry.
- The closest airport to RAF High Wycombe (HYC) is RAF Benson (BEX), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) WSW of HYC.
- Since 2009, the station has been responsible for reviewing UFO sightings as part of efforts to identify any possible unauthorised military incursions into UK airspace.
- Operationally during the Cold War the Director UKWMO would have been located at the United Kingdom Regional Air Operations Command within Strike Command's Operations Centre nuclear bunker at RAF High Wycombe to instigate the national Four minute air raid warnings, with the Deputy Director located at a standby UK RAOC, described at the time as being "elsewhere in the UK", but has since been revealed as being at Goosnargh near Preston within the UKWMO Western Sector nuclear bunker.
- The furthest airport from RAF High Wycombe (HYC) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,867 miles (19,098 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
- The location of the station was originally suggested by Wing Commander Alan Oakeshott when the Air Ministry was seeking a new, secure, site for Bomber Command away from London.
- Prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, the Air Ministry sought a safe location for RAF Bomber Command away from London.
- Buildings were designed to resemble other uses, such as the Officers' Mess which was built to look like a manor house.