Nonstop flight route between Kwajalein, Marshall Islands and Salmon, Idaho, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from KWA to SMN:
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- About this route
- KWA Airport Information
- SMN Airport Information
- Facts about KWA
- Facts about SMN
- Map of Nearest Airports to KWA
- List of Nearest Airports to KWA
- Map of Furthest Airports from KWA
- List of Furthest Airports from KWA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMN
- List of Nearest Airports to SMN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMN
- List of Furthest Airports from SMN
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA), Kwajalein, Marshall Islands and Lemhi County Airport (SMN), Salmon, Idaho, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,227 miles (or 8,412 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 Bucholz Army Airfield and Lemhi County 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 Bucholz Army Airfield and Lemhi County Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | KWA / PKWA |
Airport Name: | Bucholz Army Airfield |
Location: | Kwajalein, Marshall Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 8°43'12"N by 167°43'54"E |
Operator/Owner: | United States Army |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 9 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from KWA |
More Information: | KWA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMN / KSMN |
Airport Name: | Lemhi County Airport |
Location: | Salmon, Idaho, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 45°7'26"N by 113°52'53"W |
Operator/Owner: | Lemhi County |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 4043 feet (1,232 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SMN |
More Information: | SMN Maps & Info |
Facts about Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA):
- The closest airport to Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) is Ebadon Airstrip (EBN), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) SSE of KWA.
- Along with the heavy bomber groups, the USAAF reassigned the F-5 -equipped 28th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron to Kwajalein to fly long-range photographic missions over the Marshalls and reported directly to Headquarters, Seventh Air Force.
- Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Bucholz Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Bucholz Army Airfield 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.
- After the war, the United States used Kwajalein as a main command center and preparation base for Operation Crossroads and an extensive series of nuclear tests at the Marshalls' atolls of Bikini and Enewetak.
- The furthest airport from Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is nearly antipodal to Bucholz Army Airfield (meaning Bucholz Army Airfield is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from RAF Ascension), and is located 12,283 miles (19,767 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
- Since the entire Kwajalein Island is a military base, non-military passengers on commercial flights are transported to and from the neighboring island of Ebeye, the civilian population center of Kwajalein Atoll.
Facts about Lemhi County Airport (SMN):
- Lemhi County Airport (SMN) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Lemhi County Airport (SMN) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,686 miles (17,197 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Lemhi County Airport (SMN) is Challis Airport (CHL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) SSW of SMN.
- Because of Lemhi County Airport's high elevation of 4,043 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at SMN. Combined with a high temperature, this could make SMN a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.