Nonstop flight route between Crestview, Florida, United States and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 (EGI), Crestview, Florida, United States and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,114 miles (or 13,059 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 Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 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 Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 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 Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 (EGI):

• In 1980, Duke Field was also one of the fields used in training for Operation Credible Sport, an initiative to prepare for a second rescue attempt of American hostages held in Iran using C-130 aircraft modified with multiple rocket engines for extremely short landings and takeoffs.
• In addition to being known as "Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3", another name for EGI is "Duke Field".
• Six original Raiders were present at Duke Field, on Saturday 31 May 2008 for the culmination of their annual reunion.
• The installation is named for 1st Lt Robert L.
• Between August and October 1970, during the Vietnam War, the Joint Contingency Task Group used AFROTC facilities at Duke Field to house US Army Special Forces troops involved in Operation Ivory Coast, a mission to rescue prisoners of war at Sơn Tây, North Vietnam.
• The closest airport to Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 (EGI) is Bob Sikes Airport (CEW), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) N of EGI.
• The furthest airport from Duke FieldEglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 (EGI) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,172 miles (17,980 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 1960 and 1961, in preparation for the Bay of Pigs Invasion, Duke Field was host to 'sanitized' Douglas C-54s and Curtiss C-46s used for transporting personnel, armaments and supplies between US bases such as Homestead AFB and Opa-locka Airport and CIA-run bases in Guatemala and latterly Nicaragua.
• Although technically part of the larger nearby Eglin Air Force Base complex, today Duke Field is essentially a small air force base in its own right.

Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):

• 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.
• The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
• In January 1944, the Allies drove the Japanese out of Buka, and the airfield was used for operations against the Japanese over New Guinea.
• The origins of the airfield begin in 1941 when Australian troops built gun pits around a primitive airstrip in December 1941.
• 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.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.