Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Masuda, Shimane, Japan, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Iwami Airport (IWJ), Masuda, Shimane, Japan, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,776 miles (or 6,077 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 Merrill Field and Iwami 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 Merrill Field and Iwami 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 Merrill Field (MRI):

• The airstrip is still in use today as the primary field for private wheel equipped aircraft in the warmer months and for ski equipped in the winter.
• Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill Field 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 furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Merrill Field is home to the University of Alaska Anchorage's Aviation Technology Division, as well as two locally-owned flight schools, air taxi services, and fixed base operators.
• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.

Facts about Iwami Airport (IWJ):

• The closest airport to Iwami Airport (IWJ) is Yamaguchi Ube Airport (UBJ), which is located 59 miles (95 kilometers) SSW of IWJ.
• Because of Iwami Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Iwami 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 furthest airport from Iwami Airport (IWJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Iwami Airport (meaning Iwami Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,147 miles (19,548 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• In addition to being known as "Iwami Airport", other names for IWJ include "石見空港" and "Iwami Kūkō".
• Iwami Airport (IWJ) currently has only 1 runway.