Nonstop flight route between Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands and Agana, Guam:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR), Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands and Andersen Air Force Base (UAM), Agana, Guam would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,898 miles (or 3,055 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 relatively short distance between Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) and Andersen Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR):

• Henderson Field was named for Marine Major Lofton Henderson, commanding officer of VMSB-241 who was killed in action at the Battle of Midway while leading his squadron into action against the Japanese carrier forces thereby becoming the first Marine aviator to perish during the battle.
• The furthest airport from Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Cap Skirring Airport (CSK), which is nearly antipodal to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (meaning Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap Skirring Airport), and is located 12,138 miles (19,533 kilometers) away in Cap Skirring, Senegal.
• Because of Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field)'s relatively low elevation of 28 feet, planes can take off or land at Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) 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.
• Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Mbambanakira Airport (MBU), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) SSW of HIR.

Facts about Andersen Air Force Base (UAM):

• Andersen Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 4 miles northeast of Yigo near Agafo Gumas in the United States territory of Guam.
• The furthest airport from Andersen Air Force Base (UAM) is Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho) (SSA), which is nearly antipodal to Andersen Air Force Base (meaning Andersen Air Force Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho)), and is located 12,214 miles (19,656 kilometers) away in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
• With the start of Operation Arc Light in June 1965, B-52s and KC-135s began regular bombing missions over Vietnam, and continued in that capacity until 1973, with a break between August 1970 and early 1972.
• After the war, B-29s from North Field dropped food and supplies to Allied prisoners and participated in several show-of-force missions over Japan.
• The closest airport to Andersen Air Force Base (UAM) is Guam International Airport (GUM), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) SW of UAM.
• In 1951, the Strategic Air Command chose several overseas bases to support rotational unit deployments of its bombers from stateside bases, starting with B-29 Superfortress units and later including Convair B-36, B-47 Stratojet, B-50 Superfortress bombers, and KB-29 refueling tankers.
• The first host unit at North Field was the 314th Bombardment Wing, XXI Bomber Command, Twentieth Air Force.
• Flying out of Guam, S/Sgt Henry E Erwin of the 29th Bombardment Group was awarded the Medal of Honor for action that saved his B-29 during a mission over Koriyama, Japan, on 12 April 1945.