Nonstop flight route between Izumo, Shimane, Japan and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Izumo Airport (IZO), Izumo, Shimane, Japan and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,181 miles (or 11,556 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 Izumo Airport and Shaw Air Force Base, 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 Izumo Airport and Shaw Air Force Base. 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 Izumo Airport (IZO):

• In addition to being known as "Izumo Airport", other names for IZO include "出雲空港" and "Izumo Kūkō".
• Izumo Airport (IZO) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Izumo Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Izumo 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 furthest airport from Izumo Airport (IZO) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Izumo Airport (meaning Izumo Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,066 miles (19,419 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Izumo Airport (IZO) is Miho-Yonago Airport (YGJ), which is located 20 miles (33 kilometers) ENE of IZO.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• On 1 April 1951, the 363d TRW was transferred to Shaw from Langley Air Force Base, Virginia The 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing would remain at Shaw, under various designations, for the next 43 years.
• After the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military branch in September 1947, Shaw Army Airfield was renamed Shaw Air Force Base, on 13 January 1948 and the 20th Fighter-Bomber Wing was activated on 15 August 1947 with the implementation of the Hobson Plan.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.