Nonstop flight route between Funafuti, Tuvalu and Okinawa Prefecture, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Funafuti International Airport (FUN), Funafuti, Tuvalu and Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA), Okinawa Prefecture, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,206 miles (or 6,769 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 Funafuti International Airport and Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō, 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 Funafuti International Airport and Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō. 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 Funafuti International Airport (FUN):

• Funafuti Airport was built by United States Navy Seabee construction battalions in 1943 during World War II.
• Funafuti International Airport is an airport in Funafuti, capital of the island nation of Tuvalu.
• The closest airport to Funafuti International Airport (FUN) is Arorae Island Airport (AIS), which is located 440 miles (708 kilometers) NNW of FUN.
• Because of Funafuti International Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Funafuti International 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.
• Funafuti International Airport (FUN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Funafuti International Airport (FUN) is Tamale Airport (TML), which is nearly antipodal to Funafuti International Airport (meaning Funafuti International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tamale Airport), and is located 12,365 miles (19,900 kilometers) away in Tamale, Northern Region, Ghana.
• By the middle of 1944, as the fighting moved further north toward Japan, the Americans began to withdraw.
• The deterioration of the runway's sub-base is a consequence of its low elevation and the hydrologic dynamics in the sub-surface of the atoll.

Facts about Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA):

• 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.
• Twentieth Air Force was inactivated in March 1955.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Korean War emphasized the need for maintaining a naval presence in Okinawa.
• 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 1972, the 1st Special Operations Squadron was assigned, bringing their specialized Lockheed C/MC-130 Hercules aircraft to the wing.