Nonstop flight route between Grosseto, Italy and Okinawa Prefecture, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grosseto Airport (GRS), Grosseto, Italy and Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō (DNA), Okinawa Prefecture, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,196 miles (or 9,971 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 Grosseto 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 Grosseto 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 Grosseto Airport (GRS):

• The airport resides at an elevation of 15 feet above mean sea level.
• During World War II the airfield was used by the United States Army Air Force Twelfth Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Grosseto Airport", other names for GRS include "Aeroporto di Grosseto" and "Grosseto Airport".
• The furthest airport from Grosseto Airport (GRS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Grosseto Airport (meaning Grosseto Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,051 miles (19,395 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Grosseto Airport (GRS) is Siena-Ampugnano Airport (SAY), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of GRS.
• Grosseto Airport handled 4,382 passengers last year.
• Grosseto Airport (GRS) has 2 runways.
• Because of Grosseto Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Grosseto 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.

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

• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Kadena Air Base 嘉手納飛行場 Kadena Hikōjō", another name for DNA is "Kadena AFB".
• What the Americans captured was a 4,600 feet strip of badly-damaged coral runway.
• At the end of the Eisenhower presidency, around 1,700 nuclear weapons were deployed on shore in the Pacific, 800 of which were at Kadena Air Base.
• In June 2013, the government of Japan discovered 22 barrels buried on former base property that tests showed had previously contained dioxins and herbicides.
• 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.
• Upon its reassignment to the Pacific Theater, Eighth Air Force was assigned to the U.S.