Nonstop flight route between Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between New Chitose Airport (CTS), Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,428 miles (or 5,517 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 New Chitose Airport and Buka Island 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 New Chitose Airport and Buka Island 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 New Chitose Airport (CTS):

• New Chitose Airport (CTS) has 4 runways.
• The closest airport to New Chitose Airport (CTS) is Asahikawa Airport (AKJ), which is located 73 miles (117 kilometers) NNE of CTS.
• In addition to being known as "New Chitose Airport", other names for CTS include "Sapporo/New Chitose Airport", "新千歳空港" and "Shin-Chitose Kūkō".
• The furthest airport from New Chitose Airport (CTS) is Capitán de Corbeta Carlos A. Curbelo International Airport (PDP), which is located 11,383 miles (18,319 kilometers) away in Maldonado/Punta del Este, Maldonado, Uruguay.
• New Chitose opened in 1991 to replace the adjacent Chitose Airport, a joint-use facility which had served passenger flights since 1963.
• International departures area
• Along with Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport in Russia, it is one of the closest Asian airports to North America along the great circle route used by transpacific flights, and is therefore an ideal refueling stop for many heavy cargo flights between Asia and North America.
• Because of New Chitose Airport's relatively low elevation of 70 feet, planes can take off or land at New Chitose 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 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.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• On 13 May 1943 Allied reconnaissance observed 36 fighters and 6 bombers at the airstrip.
• 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.
• It is located at the southern end of the island, near Buka Passage behind the town of Buka, and pre-war Chinatown.