Nonstop flight route between Yakushima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Yakushima Airport (KUM), Yakushima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,738 miles (or 12,452 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 Yakushima Airport and King Shaka International, 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 Yakushima Airport and King Shaka International. 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 Yakushima Airport (KUM):

• The closest airport to Yakushima Airport (KUM) is Kagoshima Airport (KOJ), which is located 98 miles (158 kilometers) N of KUM.
• The furthest airport from Yakushima Airport (KUM) is Salgado Filho International Airport (POA), which is nearly antipodal to Yakushima Airport (meaning Yakushima Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salgado Filho International Airport), and is located 12,324 miles (19,834 kilometers) away in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
• Because of Yakushima Airport's relatively low elevation of 122 feet, planes can take off or land at Yakushima 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.
• Yakushima Airport (KUM) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Yakushima Airport", other names for KUM include "屋久島空港" and "Yakushima Kūkō".

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• Construction of the airport commenced on 24 August 2007, immediately after the approval of the EIA.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The cargo terminal is located to the north of the passenger terminal, and is in the approximate centre of the airport precinct.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.
• The final obstacle was a delay in the approval of the project's Environmental Impact Assessment by the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
• On 8 December 2009, it was reported that "King Shaka International Airport" was indeed the most popular name for the new airport.
• It is unclear what the fate of the existing Durban International Airport will be now that KSIA is complete.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.