Nonstop flight route between Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merimbula Airport (MIM), Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,627 miles (or 15,493 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 Merimbula Airport and Shaw 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 Merimbula Airport and Shaw 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 Merimbula Airport (MIM):

• Merimbula Airport (MIM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Merimbula Airport (MIM) is Horta International Airport (HOR), which is nearly antipodal to Merimbula Airport (meaning Merimbula Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Horta International Airport), and is located 12,302 miles (19,799 kilometers) away in Horta, Azores, Portugal.
• Because of Merimbula Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Merimbula 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.
• The closest airport to Merimbula Airport (MIM) is Moruya Airport (MYA), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) N of MIM.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• In addition to the 363d TRW, Headquarters Ninth Air Force was transferred to Shaw from Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina on 1 September 1954.
• As a result of the August 1992 destruction of Homestead AFB Florida by Hurricane Andrew in September 1992, the 31st Fighter Wing's 309th Fighter Squadron was initially evacuated to Shaw AFB prior to the hurricane making landfall.
• The 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• The squadrons flew the P-61 Black Widow in Europe with Ninth Air Force during World War II, and were reassigned back to the United States after the end of hostilities.
• On 1 April 1951, the 363d TRW was transferred to Shaw from Langley Air Force Base, Virginia The 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing would remain at Shaw, under various designations, for the next 43 years.
• On 25 June 1953, the 66th TRW departed Shaw, being reassigned to Sembach Air Base, West Germany.