Nonstop flight route between Point Lay, Alaska, United States and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ), Point Lay, Alaska, United States and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,858 miles (or 6,209 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 Point Lay LRRS 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 Point Lay LRRS 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 Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ):

• The LRR site was inactivated in 1989 due to soil erosion & budget concerns.
• The radar station was upgraded in the late 1980s with new radars and in 1989 was re-designated part of the North Warning System as a Long Range Radar Site, A-15, controlled by the Pacific Air Forces 611th Air Support Group, based at Elmendorf AFB.
• Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Point Lay LRRS Airport's relatively low elevation of 25 feet, planes can take off or land at Point Lay LRRS 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 closest airport to Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) is Wainwright Airport (AIN), which is located 94 miles (152 kilometers) NE of PIZ.
• Point Lay LRRS Airport has one runway designated 5/23 with a gravel surface measuring 3,519 by 80 feet.
• The furthest airport from Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,387 miles (16,716 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• 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.
• Shaw Field was activated on 30 August 1941 and placed under the jurisdiction of the Army Air Corps Southeast Air Corps Training Center.
• 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 432nd's mission at Shaw AFB was to assume the reconnaissance training mission that was handled previously by the 363d TRW.
• Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.
• 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.
• On 25 June 1953, the 66th TRW departed Shaw, being reassigned to Sembach Air Base, West Germany.
• The 363d TFW received its first F-16 on 26 March 1982.