Nonstop flight route between Fritzlar, Hessen, Germany and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ), Fritzlar, Hessen, Germany and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,427 miles (or 7,125 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 Fritzlar Air Base and Shaw Air Force Base, 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 Fritzlar Air Base and Shaw Air Force Base. 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 Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ):

• Because of Fritzlar Air Base's relatively low elevation of 566 feet, planes can take off or land at Fritzlar Air Base 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 Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) is Kassel Calden Airport (KSF), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) NNE of FRZ.
• Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Fritzlar Air Base (FRZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,865 miles (19,096 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In August 1941 the hangars of the airfield were used by Junkers as maintenance and production site.
• In March 1945 a training squadron of Nachtjagdgeschwader 101 was based in Fritzlar.
• As replacement of the US Forces, the French 5th Hussar Regiment with AMX 13 tanks was based at Fritzlar.
• Air force operations were phased out on 14 September 1947, and the air base was turned over to the United States Army.
• In addition to being known as "Fritzlar Air Base", another name for FRZ is "Heeresflugplatz FritzlarAdvanced Landing Ground Y-86".

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• The 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• With the closure of Myrtle Beach Air Force Base South Carolina and the inactivation of the 354th Fighter Wing, the 21st Tactical Fighter Squadron was activated at Shaw and received 30 Republic A/OA-10 Thunderbolt IIs from the inactivating 355th Fighter Squadron on 1 April 1992.
• The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• On 23 September 1949 the 161st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was transferred to the 20th from the 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing at Langley AFB Virginia.