Nonstop flight route between Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and Staunton / Waynesboro / Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD), Staunton / Waynesboro / Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,249 miles (or 5,229 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 Ladd Army Airfield and Shenandoah Valley Regional 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 Ladd Army Airfield and Shenandoah Valley Regional 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 Ladd Army Airfield (FBK):

• The furthest airport from Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,286 miles (16,554 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) currently has only 1 runway.
• From the late 1940s into the 1950s, Ladd AFB served as the northern hub for Air Force activities in Alaska.
• The closest airport to Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of FBK.
• Ladd was not exclusively an Air Force site.
• Because of Ladd Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 454 feet, planes can take off or land at Ladd Army Airfield 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.
• Alaska's transportation infrastructure at the time was so limited and the problem of military supply so acute, it also made sense to concentrate the bases along existing supply lines near Anchorage and Fairbanks.
• The major use of Ladd Field was primarily cold-weather testing of aircraft and equipment.
• Testing at Ladd Field began again in 1942, but by 1943 aircraft cold-weather testing had become a second priority, as Ladd became the hub for fighters and bombers destined for the "Forgotten 1,000 Mile War" in the Aleutians against the Japanese or on their way to Soviet forces as part of the Lend-Lease program.
• In addition to being known as "Ladd Army Airfield", another name for FBK is "(Ladd Air Force Base)".

Facts about Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD):

• The closest airport to Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) is Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) ESE of SHD.
• Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) currently has only 1 runway.
• In June 2013, Shenandoah Regional Airport received criticism when an inmate of the Virginia Department of Corrections escaped from a work program based there.
• Silver Airways operating as United Express operates Saab 340B turboprop aircraft from the airport.
• The furthest airport from Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,601 miles (18,670 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.