Nonstop flight route between Lugano, Agno, Switzerland and Wichita Falls, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lugano Airport (LUG), Lugano, Agno, Switzerland and Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,300 miles (or 8,530 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 Lugano Airport and Sheppard 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 Lugano Airport and Sheppard 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 Lugano Airport (LUG):

• The current location of the airport dates back to 1938, when it opened as a grass field.
• In the early 1980s, the airline Crossair decided to invest in the airport, establishing connections between Lugano and various European cities.
• Around 200,000 passengers use the airport each year, using some 2,400 flights.
• Because of Lugano Airport's relatively low elevation of 915 feet, planes can take off or land at Lugano 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.
• A shuttle bus connects the airport with Lugano railway station and city centre, meeting most scheduled flights.
• The closest airport to Lugano Airport (LUG) is Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) SSW of LUG.
• The airport has a single, bi-directional runway with an asphalt surface, identified as 01/19.
• The airport's instrument approach procedure is quite challenging because of its steep angle of descent of 6.65°, more than double of the standard approach angle of 3°.
• In addition to being known as "Lugano Airport", another name for LUG is "Aeroporto di Lugano".
• The furthest airport from Lugano Airport (LUG) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Lugano Airport (meaning Lugano Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,134 miles (19,527 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Lugano Airport (LUG) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):

• In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
• The 3630th Flying Training Wing was activated in 1965, and it assumed the helicopter training program.
• The furthest airport from Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,952 miles (17,626 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Helicopter pilot training was transferred from Stead AFB, Nevada in October 1965, with H-19, H-43, Bell TH-1F, CH-3C and HH-3E helicopters used for training.
• As of September 2013, Brigadier General Scott Kindsvater is the commander of the 82d Training Wing, and he concurrently serves as the installation commander of Sheppard AFB.
• The closest airport to Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Kickapoo Downtown Airport (KIP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) S of SPS.
• It was officially opened as an Army Air Corps training center on 17 October 1941, following the arrival of the first military members on 14 June.