Nonstop flight route between Wichita, Kansas, United States and Sibu, Malaysia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB), Wichita, Kansas, United States and Sibu Airport (SBW), Sibu, Malaysia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,106 miles (or 14,654 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Sibu 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield and Sibu 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 McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB):

• In August 1941, the Kansas National Guard 127th Observation Squadron was activated as the first military unit assigned to the Wichita airport.
• In addition to being known as "McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield", another name for IAB is "McConnell AFB".
• The closest airport to McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Cessna Aircraft Field (CEA), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) NNE of IAB.
• Air Training Command was host at the base from 1951 through 1958, training B-47 aircrews.
• The mission of the 23 TFW at McConnell was to provide training for F-105 pilots prior to their deployment to Southeast Asia.
• The furthest airport from McConnell Air Force Base Wichita Army Airfield (IAB) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,740 miles (17,285 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• On 31 May 1951, the USAF took title to Wichita Municipal Airport, and on 4 June the Air Training Command 3520th Combat Crew Training Wing was activated at the facility.
• Air Materiel Command's mission at the airport was to accept, service and coordinate the transfer of newly produced Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers to other installations.

Facts about Sibu Airport (SBW):

• Sibu Airport handled 1,383,887 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Sibu Airport (SBW) is Ipiranga Airport (IPG), which is nearly antipodal to Sibu Airport (meaning Sibu Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ipiranga Airport), and is located 12,312 miles (19,814 kilometers) away in Santo Antônio do Içá, Amazonas, Brazil.
• On that remarkably historical night, the air traffic clearance "Clear to land" was issued from the Sibu Air Traffic Control Tower on the assigned frequency 122.6 MHZ to the first Boeing 737-500 to land on the asphalt surface of the designated runway 13.
• Because of Sibu Airport's relatively low elevation of 122 feet, planes can take off or land at Sibu 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.
• The first airport in Sibu was built in Teku, during World War II by the Japanese as a basic air strip.
• The closest airport to Sibu Airport (SBW) is Mukah Airport (MKM), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) N of SBW.
• Sibu New Airport was built with a single runway designated as runway 13/31.
• The brand new check-in counters of the airport were opened on 19 December 2011.
• The upgraded terminal started its operation on 31 July 2012.
• The actual official date of operation of the new airport began 1 June 1994.
• Sibu Airport (SBW) currently has only 1 runway.
• In April 2009, the airport was given RM 150 million for an upgrade of the terminal building.
• In addition to being known as "Sibu Airport", other names for SBW include "Lapangan Terbang Sibu", "诗巫机场" and "WBGS".