Nonstop flight route between Columbus, New Mexico, United States and Hawker, South Australia, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS), Columbus, New Mexico, United States and Wilpena Pound (HWK), Hawker, South Australia, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,610 miles (or 13,857 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 Municipal Airport and Wilpena Pound, 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 Municipal Airport and Wilpena Pound. 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 Municipal Airport (CUS):

• The closest airport to Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) is Deming Municipal AirportDeming Army Airfield (DMN), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) N of CUS.
• After World War I, Columbus Airfield was used by the Army as part of their patrol flights along the Mexican border.
• The furthest airport from Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,433 miles (18,400 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In addition to being known as "Columbus Municipal Airport", other names for CUS include "Historical Airport", "Modern Airfield" and "0NM0".
• The Curtiss aircraft were not in good condition, however, despite their lack of readiness, the fliers prepared for combat.
• Because of Columbus Municipal Airport's high elevation of 4,024 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at CUS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make CUS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The fliers arrived on 20 April 1916, and found four new Curtiss N-8s, an export version of the JN-4, the latest model of the Jenny.
• The airport's operations ceased abruptly with the arrest of the notorious "Columbus Air Force" drug-running gang by the DEA in the late 1970s.
• Columbus Municipal Airport (CUS) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Wilpena Pound (HWK):

• After the immense labour of constructing a road through the torturous Wilpena Gap, they built a small homestead inside the Pound, which still stands today, and cleared some open patches in the thick scrub of the interior.
• The furthest airport from Wilpena Pound (HWK) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is located 11,642 miles (18,736 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Point Bonney was named after the Crown Commissioner of Lands Charles Bonney, while Rawnsley's Bluff is named after the surveyor H.C.
• Because of Wilpena Pound's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wilpena Pound 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.
• The closest airport to Wilpena Pound (HWK) is Leigh Creek Airport (LGH), which is located 67 miles (108 kilometers) N of HWK.