Nonstop flight route between Kwethluk, Alaska, United States and Misawa, Aomori, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kwethluk Airport (KWT), Kwethluk, Alaska, United States and Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ), Misawa, Aomori, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,741 miles (or 4,411 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 Kwethluk Airport and Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō, 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 Kwethluk Airport and Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō. 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 Kwethluk Airport (KWT):

• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, this airport had 2,923 passenger boardings in calendar year 2007, an increase of 26% from the 2,329 enplanements in 2006.
• Kwethluk Airport (KWT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Kwethluk Airport (KWT) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,584 miles (17,033 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Kwethluk Airport (KWT) is Bethel Seaplane Base (JBT), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) W of KWT.
• Because of Kwethluk Airport's relatively low elevation of 30 feet, planes can take off or land at Kwethluk 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.

Facts about Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ):

• In 1870, the Japanese Emperor established a stud farm for the household cavalry in the area that later became Misawa AB, and kept his own cavalry there until 1931, when the Sino-Japanese conflict required their use in China.
• In addition to being known as "Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō", another name for MSJ is "Misawa AB".
• The closest airport to Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ) is JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base (HHE), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) SSE of MSJ.
• The first Japanese Air Self-Defense Force units were activated at Misawa in October 1954, and the first Japanese Northern Air Defense Force units began operations in 1957.
• Misawa Air Base is a United States military facility located 3 NM northeast of the railway station in Misawa, 3 mi west of the Pacific Ocean, 10 mi northeast of Towada, 18 mi northwest of Hachinohe, and 425 mi north of Tokyo, in Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region in the northern part of the island of Honshū of Japan.
• The furthest airport from Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,479 miles (18,473 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Between May and August 1953, the 12th Strategic Fighter Wing pulled a rotational TDY at Misawa relieving the 27th and being relieved in turn by the 31st Strategic Fighter Wing.