Nonstop flight route between Sibu, Malaysia and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sibu Airport (SBW), Sibu, Malaysia and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,805 miles (or 15,780 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 Sibu 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 Sibu 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 Sibu Airport (SBW):

• The brand new check-in counters of the airport were opened on 19 December 2011.
• Because of Sibu Airport's relatively low elevation of 122 feet, planes can take off or land at Sibu 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 first airport in Sibu was built in Teku, during World War II by the Japanese as a basic air strip.
• The furthest airport from Sibu Airport (SBW) is Ipiranga Airport (IPG), which is nearly antipodal to Sibu Airport (meaning Sibu Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ipiranga Airport), and is located 12,312 miles (19,814 kilometers) away in Santo Antônio do Içá, Amazonas, Brazil.
• On 2 September 1992, a Fokker 50 aircraft landing gear failed, causing the aircraft to veer off the runway and into the bushes.
• In addition to being known as "Sibu Airport", other names for SBW include "Lapangan Terbang Sibu", "诗巫机场" and "WBGS".
• Sibu Airport handled 1,383,887 passengers last year.
• Runway 13 is equipped with an approach lighting system called Precision Approach Lighting Category 1, whereas runway 31 with Simple Approach Lighting System.
• The closest airport to Sibu Airport (SBW) is Mukah Airport (MKM), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) N of SBW.
• The old airport has been demolished to make way for Laila Taib College and Tun Zaidi Stadium.
• Sibu Airport (SBW) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
• 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.
• The 363d TFW received its first F-16 on 26 March 1982.
• The squadrons flew the P-61 Black Widow in Europe with Ninth Air Force during World War II, and were reassigned back to the United States after the end of hostilities.
• The 432nd's mission at Shaw AFB was to assume the reconnaissance training mission that was handled previously by the 363d TRW.