Nonstop flight route between Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States and Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from MSL to MDY:
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- About this route
- MSL Airport Information
- MDY Airport Information
- Facts about MSL
- Facts about MDY
- Map of Nearest Airports to MSL
- List of Nearest Airports to MSL
- Map of Furthest Airports from MSL
- List of Furthest Airports from MSL
- Map of Nearest Airports to MDY
- List of Nearest Airports to MDY
- Map of Furthest Airports from MDY
- List of Furthest Airports from MDY
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL), Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States and Henderson Field (MDY), Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,127 miles (or 8,251 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 Northwest Alabama Regional Airport and Henderson Field, 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 Northwest Alabama Regional Airport and Henderson Field. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MSL / KMSL |
Airport Name: | Northwest Alabama Regional Airport |
Location: | Muscle Shoals, Alabama, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°44'43"N by 87°36'37"W |
Area Served: | Muscle Shoals, Alabama |
Operator/Owner: | Colbert & Lauderdale Counties |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 551 feet (168 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from MSL |
More Information: | MSL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MDY / PMDY |
Airport Name: | Henderson Field |
Location: | Sand Island, Midway Atoll, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 28°12'5"N by 177°22'53"W |
Area Served: | Midway Atoll |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Dept. of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 18 feet (5 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MDY |
More Information: | MDY Maps & Info |
Facts about Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL):
- Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) is Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of MSL.
- Northwest Alabama Regional Airport covers an area of 640 acres at an elevation of 551 feet above mean sea level.
- The airport was opened in February 1940, however in 1942 it was taken over by the United States Army Air Forces as a World War II pilot training military airfield.
- The furthest airport from Northwest Alabama Regional Airport (MSL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,143 miles (17,932 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Northwest Alabama Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 551 feet, planes can take off or land at Northwest Alabama Regional 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.
- Prior to summer 2009, Muscle Shoals was served from Northwest Airlines' hub in Memphis via Northwest Airlink turboprop service operated by Mesaba Airlines.
Facts about Henderson Field (MDY):
- Henderson Field (MDY) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Henderson Field's relatively low elevation of 18 feet, planes can take off or land at Henderson 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 airfield was previously served by Aloha Airlines with scheduled weekly charter flghts to and from Honolulu utilizing a Boeing 737-200 jetliner.
- The closest airport to Henderson Field (MDY) is Johnston Atoll Airport (JON), which is located 937 miles (1,508 kilometers) SE of MDY.
- Henderson Field was named after Major Lofton R.
- The furthest airport from Henderson Field (MDY) is Lüderitz Airport (LUD), which is located 11,656 miles (18,759 kilometers) away in Luderitz, Namibia.