Nonstop flight route between Roanoke, Virginia, United States and Sumbawanga, Tanzania:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA), Roanoke, Virginia, United States and Sumbawanga Airport (SUT), Sumbawanga, Tanzania would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,734 miles (or 12,447 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport and Sumbawanga 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport and Sumbawanga 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 Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA):

• Originally 5,900 feet in length, an expansion to lengthen Runway 6/24 was originally envisioned in the 1970s.
• In the time since the initial commercial service to Roanoke commenced in 1933, various airlines have offered non-stop service to and from Roanoke.
• The closest airport to Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) is Virginia Tech Montgomery Executive Airport (BCB), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) WSW of ROA.
• Although Roanoke has never had international passenger service, in 2001, the Airport Commission was prepared to change the airport's name to Roanoke International Airport.
• Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport", another name for ROA is "Woodrum Field".
• When facilities reached their maximum capacity, the need for upgrades became necessary for the airport to continue to grow.
• The furthest airport from Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,559 miles (18,603 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The current terminal building was designed by the Charlotte based architectural firm of Odell Associates and was built to serve as a replacement for the 1953 terminal, later demolished in 2005.
• Piedmont service originally commenced on April 16, 1948, with only a pair of flights, which carried 42 passengers.

Facts about Sumbawanga Airport (SUT):

• The closest airport to Sumbawanga Airport (SUT) is Mbala Airport (MMQ), which is located 66 miles (106 kilometers) SSW of SUT.
• Sumbawanga Airport (SUT) currently has only 1 runway.
• Sumbawanga Airport handled 806 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Sumbawanga Airport (SUT) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,695 miles (18,822 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• Because of Sumbawanga Airport's high elevation of 5,920 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at SUT. Combined with a high temperature, this could make SUT a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• In addition to being known as "Sumbawanga Airport", another name for SUT is "Uwanja wa Ndege wa Sumbawanga  (Swahili)".