Nonstop flight route between Oran, Algeria and Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (ORN), Oran, Algeria and Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,296 miles (or 5,305 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 Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport and Shearwater Heliport, 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 Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport and Shearwater Heliport. 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 Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (ORN):

• During the Operation Torch landings in 1942, La Sénia was one of the primary objectives of the assault on Oran on 9 November.
• In addition to being known as "Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport", other names for ORN include "Es Sénia Airport (Ouahran)" and "مطار السانية وهران".
• Because of Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at Es-Sénia – Ben Bella 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 Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (ORN) is Whakatane Airport (WHK), which is nearly antipodal to Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (meaning Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Whakatane Airport), and is located 12,228 miles (19,678 kilometers) away in Whakatane, New Zealand.
• Once the combat units moved east to other airfields in Algeria and Tunisia during the late spring of 1943, the airfield came under the control of Air Transport Command, under which it functioned as a stopover en route to Algiers airport or to Port Lyautey Airfield, in French Morocco on the North African Cairo–Dakar transport route for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel.
• The closest airport to Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (ORN) is Oran Tafaraoui Airport (TAF), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SE of ORN.
• Es-Sénia – Ben Bella Airport (ORN) has 2 runways.

Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• 12 Wing's squadrons at Shearwater Heliport in Nova Scotia and at Patricia Bay in British Columbia currently operate the Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King but is expected to re-equip with the Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone commencing in 2012 with the conclusion of the Maritime Helicopter Project.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• The furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
• By the 1980s this air show came to be named the "Shearwater International Air Show" and was a popular event for military aviation enthusiasts in Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States as the location of CFB Shearwater, coupled with the popularity of the Halifax area among military aircrew, resulted in heavy international participation from the RCAF, as well as the USAF, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, Royal Air Force and numerous other NATO air forces in Europe.
• Following a base rationalization program in the mid-1990s, the Canadian Forces closed CFB Shearwater as a separate formation and realigned the property's various facilities into CFB Halifax.
• The February 1, 1968 unification of the three service branches into the Canadian Forces saw HMCS Shearwater change its name to Canadian Forces Base Shearwater.
• Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater Heliport 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.