Nonstop flight route between Gillette, Wyoming, United States and Okinawa Prefecture, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC), Gillette, Wyoming, United States and Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA), Okinawa Prefecture, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,506 miles (or 10,470 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 Gillette–Campbell County 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 Gillette–Campbell County 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 Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC):

• The furthest airport from Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,622 miles (17,094 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC) is Sheridan County Airport (SHR), which is located 77 miles (123 kilometers) WNW of GCC.
• Because of Gillette–Campbell County Airport's high elevation of 4,364 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GCC. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GCC a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.

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

• The surrender of Japanese forces in the Ryukyu Islands came on 7 September.
• 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.
• The 18th Wing is the host unit at Kadena AB.
• Beginning in 1961, the 18th was sending its tactical squadrons frequently to South Vietnam and Thailand, initially with its RF-101 reconnaissance forces, and beginning in 1964 with its tactical fighter forces supporting USAF combat missions in the Vietnam War.
• 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 addition to being known as "Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō", another name for DNA is "Kadena AFB".
• 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.
• The McDonnell Douglas RF-4C Phantom II replaced the RF-101 in the reconnaissance role in 1967.
• 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.