Nonstop flight route between Okinawa Prefecture, Japan and San Diego, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA), Okinawa Prefecture, Japan and NAS North Island (NZY), San Diego, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,532 miles (or 10,512 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 Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō and NAS North Island, 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 Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō and NAS North Island. 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 Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA):

• In 1972, the 1st Special Operations Squadron was assigned, bringing their specialized Lockheed C/MC-130 Hercules aircraft to the wing.
• The 18th Wing is the host unit at Kadena AB.
• Since November 1954, the 18th Wing under various designations has been the main United States Air Force operational unit at Kadena.
• On 7 June 1946, Headquarters Eighth Air Force moved without personnel or equipment to MacDill AAF, Florida.
• Kadena airfield was initially under the control of Seventh Air Force, however on 16 July 1945, Headquarters Eighth Air Force was transferred, without personnel, equipment, or combat elements to the town of Sakugawa, near Kadena from RAF High Wycombe England.
• Twentieth Air Force became the command and control organization for Kadena on 16 May 1949.
• The 18th Fighter-Bomber Wing was reassigned to Kadena from Osan-ni AB, South Korea on 1 November 1954, flying three squadrons of North American F-86 Sabres.
• In addition to being known as "Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō", another name for DNA is "Kadena AFB".
• The closest airport to Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA) is Naha Airport (OKA), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SW of DNA.
• The furthest airport from Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA) is Paulo Abdala Airport (FBE), which is nearly antipodal to Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (meaning Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Paulo Abdala Airport), and is located 12,381 miles (19,926 kilometers) away in Francisco Beltrao, Paraná, Brazil.

Facts about NAS North Island (NZY):

• Because of NAS North Island's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS North Island 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.
• NAS North Island (NZY) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from NAS North Island (NZY) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,542 miles (18,575 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• North Island derived its name from the original geography.
• In 1914, then-unknown aircraft builder Glenn Martin took off and demonstrated his pusher aircraft over the island with a flight that included the first parachute jump in the San Diego area.
• In addition to being known as "NAS North Island", another name for NZY is "Halsey Field".
• NAS North Island features some of the warmest winter temperatures anywhere on the West coast of the continental United States.
• The closest airport to NAS North Island (NZY) is San Diego International Airport (SAN), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of NZY.
• NAS North Island resembles a small city in its facility content and its operations.
• With all the ships in port, the population of the station is nearly 35,000 active duty military, selected reserve military, and civilian personnel.