Nonstop flight route between Funafuti, Tuvalu and Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Funafuti International Airport (FUN), Funafuti, Tuvalu and Tawau Airport (TWU), Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,300 miles (or 6,920 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 Tawau 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 Funafuti International Airport and Tawau 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 Funafuti International Airport (FUN):

• 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.
• Funafuti International Airport (FUN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Funafuti International Airport (FUN) is Arorae Island Airport (AIS), which is located 440 miles (708 kilometers) NNW of FUN.
• 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.
• 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 Airport was built by United States Navy Seabee construction battalions in 1943 during World War II.
• By the middle of 1944, as the fighting moved further north toward Japan, the Americans began to withdraw.
• The runway was originally constructed using coral aggregate and has a sub-base layer of 8 cm thick coral gravel, surfaced with a 1–2 cm asphalt chip seal.

Facts about Tawau Airport (TWU):

• Because of Tawau Airport's relatively low elevation of 57 feet, planes can take off or land at Tawau 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.
• In addition to being known as "Tawau Airport", another name for TWU is "Lapangan Terbang Tawau".
• The terminal is a one and a half stories building, which consists of two aerobridges, and its large apron can accommodate eight aircraft at one time.
• The closest airport to Tawau Airport (TWU) is Nunukan Airport (NNX), which is located 34 miles (54 kilometers) WSW of TWU.
• Tawau airport is the nearest airport to the diving islands of Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai.
• The furthest airport from Tawau Airport (TWU) is Coari Airport (CIZ), which is nearly antipodal to Tawau Airport (meaning Tawau Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Coari Airport), and is located 12,350 miles (19,875 kilometers) away in Coari, Amazonas, Brazil.
• At present, this airport is being expanded to accommodate medium wide-body aircraft with 2 aero bridges.
• Tawau Airport handled 1,202,344 passengers last year.
• Tawau Airport (TWU) currently has only 1 runway.