Nonstop flight route between Shanghai, China and Chicago, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA), Shanghai, China and Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), Chicago, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,065 miles (or 11,370 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 Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and Chicago Midway International 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 Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and Chicago Midway International 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 Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA):

• Because of Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Shanghai Hongqiao International 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.
• Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is the main domestic airport serving Shanghai, with limited international flights.
• The furthest airport from Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA) is Comodoro Pierrestegui Airport (COC), which is nearly antipodal to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (meaning Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Comodoro Pierrestegui Airport), and is located 12,397 miles (19,951 kilometers) away in Concordia, Entre Ríos, Argentina.
• Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport handled 33,851,200 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA) is Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) E of SHA.
• In addition to being known as "Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport", other names for SHA include "上海虹桥国际机场" and "Shànghǎi Hóngqiáo Guójì Jīchǎng".
• The airport has the head office of China Eastern Airlines, which is housed in the China Eastern Airlines Building, and the head office of China Cargo Airlines.
• In preparation for the Shanghai Expo, on 16 March 2010 Hongqiao Airport completed a five-year 15.3-billion-yuan expansion project, which included a 3,300-meter second runway and the new Terminal 2, boosting Hongqiao's capacity to 40 million passengers a year.
• Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA) has 2 runways.

Facts about Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW):

• Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) has 5 runways.
• Southwest, along with its subsidiary AirTran Airways, is the dominant carrier at Midway, controlling 34 of the airport's 43 gates.
• On April 20, 2009, a $2.5 billion deal to privatize the airport via a 99-year lease fell through when the consortium could not put together financing.
• In 2002 Midway welcomed the return of international service after a 40-year absence with the opening of the new Federal Inspection Service facility in Concourse A.
• The furthest airport from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,083 miles (17,836 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Chicago Midway International Airport's relatively low elevation of 620 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago Midway International 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.
• In 1931 a new passenger terminal opened at 62nd St.
• In July 1949 the airport was renamed after the Battle of Midway.
• The closest airport to Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) NNW of MDW.