Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Bankstown Airport (BWU), Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,272 miles (or 14,921 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Bankstown 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Bankstown Airport. 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 MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• It was the B-26 that earned the slogan "one a day in Tampa Bay." The aircraft proved hard to fly and land by many pilots due to its short wings, high landing speeds, and fighter plane maneuverability.
• Also located at MacDill are a division of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the Joint Communications Support Element, the Florida Air National Guard's 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron, the Navy Reserve Forces Command's Navy Operational Support Center Tampa, the US Army's 297th Military Intelligence Battalion, the Precision Measurement Equipment Laboratory, activities of the U.S.
• The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• All of these airfields came under the jurisdiction of Third Air Force.
• In February 1945, the 323d Combat Crew Training Wing was established at the base with a mission of training B-29 Superfortress aircrews.
• Air defense of the Tampa Bay area was the mission of the 53d Pursuit Group, established at MacDIll on 15 January 1941.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.

Facts about Bankstown Airport (BWU):

• Bankstown Airport (BWU) has 3 runways.
• Bankstown Airport was originally planned in 1929.
• The furthest airport from Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is nearly antipodal to Bankstown Airport (meaning Bankstown Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Santa Maria Airport), and is located 12,135 miles (19,529 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
• In 1970 the government put forth a proposal to expand the airport's operations but this was vigorously opposed by the local community.
• In addition to being known as "Bankstown Airport", another name for BWU is "Sydney/Bankstown Airport".
• The Australian Aviation Museum is located at Bankstown Airport and was opened in February, 1994
• The terminal plays host to numerous events year round such as the annual Sydney Aviation Model Show.
• Because of Bankstown Airport's relatively low elevation of 34 feet, planes can take off or land at Bankstown 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.
• Bankstown Airport operates 24 hours a day, with limitations placed on night circuit training.
• The closest airport to Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) E of BWU.