Nonstop flight route between Kitwe, Zambia and Lompoc, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Southdowns Airport (KIW), Kitwe, Zambia and Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), Lompoc, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,968 miles (or 16,042 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 Southdowns Airport and Vandenberg 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 Southdowns Airport and Vandenberg 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 Southdowns Airport (KIW):

• Southdowns Airport (KIW) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Southdowns Airport's high elevation of 4,145 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at KIW. Combined with a high temperature, this could make KIW a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The closest airport to Southdowns Airport (KIW) is Kasompe Airport (CGJ), which is located 28 miles (46 kilometers) NW of KIW.
• The furthest airport from Southdowns Airport (KIW) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,920 miles (19,184 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.

Facts about Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG):

• The base is named in honor of former Air Force Chief of Staff General Hoyt S.
• In addition to being known as "Vandenberg Air Force Base", another name for VBG is "Vandenberg AFB".
• The furthest airport from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,479 miles (18,473 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• 4th Space Launch Squadron
• The closest airport to Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Lompoc Airport (LPC), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SE of VBG.
• In 1941 the United States Army sought more and better training centers for the rapid development of its armored and infantry forces.
• Vandenberg AFB is a Department of Defense space and missile testing base, with a mission of placing satellites into polar orbit from the West Coast, using expendable boosters.
• In March 1945, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general, and full general in 1947.
• From August 1950 to February 1953, Camp Cooke served as a training installation for units slated for combat in Korea, and as a summer training base for many other reserve units.