Nonstop flight route between Marion, Illinois, United States and Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA), Marion, Illinois, United States and Goma Airport (GOM), Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,813 miles (or 12,573 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 Williamson County Regional Airport and Goma 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 Williamson County Regional Airport and Goma 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 Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA):

• On October 23, 2007, Allegiant Air announced new service to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada.
• The closest airport to Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) is Southern Illinois Airport (MDH), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) W of MWA.
• Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,065 miles (17,807 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Williamson County Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 472 feet, planes can take off or land at Williamson County 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.
• Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 3,631 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 3,399 in 2009 and 8,047 in 2010.

Facts about Goma Airport (GOM):

• Goma Airport (GOM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Goma Airport (GOM) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,981 miles (19,282 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• Because of Goma Airport's high elevation of 5,089 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GOM. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GOM a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Goma International Airport is an airport serving Goma, a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
• At 17:55 local time on 4 March 2013, a Compagnie Africaine d'Aviation Fokker 50 from Lodja crashed short of landing in heavy rain, into a residential area.
• Initially built with a paved 3 km runway and a large terminal and apron, the airport has not recovered from the 2002 eruption of the volcano Nyiragongo, 14 km to the north.
• On 15 April 2008, a Hewa Bora Airways DC-9 overshot the runway during an aborted takeoff and crashed into the marketplace immediately to the south of the airport, killing over 40 people.
• The closest airport to Goma Airport (GOM) is Gisenyi Airport (GYI), which is located only 2 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of GOM.