Nonstop flight route between Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Manston Airport (MSE), Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,099 miles (or 6,597 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 Manston 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 Manston 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 Manston Airport (MSE):

• On 26 July 2005 all EUjet operations were suspended, along with all non-freight operations at the airport, owing to financial difficulties with the airport and airline's owner, PlaneStation.
• During the Cold War of the 1950s, the United States Air Force used Manston as a Strategic Air Command base for its fighter and fighter-bomber units.
• Luxembourg based Cargolux started flying for Ghana Airways from Accra to Kent International on 17 April 2007.
• Because of Manston Airport's relatively low elevation of 178 feet, planes can take off or land at Manston 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.
• Manston Airport handled 8,595 passengers last year.
• Manston Airport (MSE) currently has only 1 runway.
• From July 2013, British Airways has operated test flights and crew training for the Airbus A380 from Manston, which was followed by a similar exercise for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.
• Newmarket Holidays continues to offer irregular charter flights during the summer months to popular destinations including Verona and Naples in Italy, as well as Porto in Portugal using the Lithuanian charter airline Small Planet Airlines for the summer 2013 season.
• The furthest airport from Manston Airport (MSE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,906 miles (19,162 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Manston Airport (MSE) is Lympne Airport (LYM), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SW of MSE.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (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.
• 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.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• The 20th FG was reassigned to Langley AFB, Virginia on 1 December 1951 in preparation for a permanent overseas deployment to RAF Wethersfield, England to support NATO.
• On 9 August 1990, the 17th and 33d TFS of 363d TFW became the first F-16 squadrons to deploy to the United Arab Emirates in Operation Desert Shield.
• 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 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
• It is one of the largest military bases operated by the United States, and is one of only two air bases in CONUS with an active railroad line.