Nonstop flight route between Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States and Maripasoula, French Guiana:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR), Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States and Maripasoula Airport (MPY), Maripasoula, French Guiana would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,463 miles (or 5,574 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 Kincheloe Air Force Base and Maripasoula 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 Kincheloe Air Force Base and Maripasoula 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 Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR):

• The mission of Kinross AAF was to serve as a refueling stop for aircraft headed for Alaska as well as to defend the locks of Sault Ste.
• The furthest airport from Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,103 miles (17,869 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• With the outbreak of the Cold War in 1948 and active combat in the Korean War in June, 1950, the United States began building up its defenses.
• The importance of Kincheloe AFB to ADC was evident in 1960 with some major changes.
• As a result of the phase down, ADC moved the 438th Fighter Interceptor Squadron to Griffiss AFB, New York.
• On 16 February 1953, the first operational ADC unit, the 534th Air Defense Group was activated at Kinross AFB.
• The 449th and its subordinate units' mission was to operate at full readiness, and support activities included aircraft and vehicle maintenance, bombing crew and unit training, and air refueling support.
• Kinross was considered a vital Air Defense Command base, an alert-status military base equipped with interceptors ready 24/7 to respond to unknown aircraft picked up by Ground Control Radar stations in the Great Lakes region.
• The closest airport to Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR) is Chippewa County International Airport (CIU), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of INR.
• Next, Kincheloe AFB was assigned to the Sault Sainte Marie Air Defense Sector at K.

Facts about Maripasoula Airport (MPY):

• Because of Maripasoula Airport's relatively low elevation of 377 feet, planes can take off or land at Maripasoula 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 closest airport to Maripasoula Airport (MPY) is Drietabbetje Airstrip (DRJ), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) NW of MPY.
• Maripasoula Airport (MPY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Maripasoula Airport (MPY) is Namrole Airport (NRE), which is nearly antipodal to Maripasoula Airport (meaning Maripasoula Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Namrole Airport), and is located 12,384 miles (19,930 kilometers) away in Buru, Indonesia.