Nonstop flight route between Shelton, Washington, United States and Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SHN to AWK:
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- About this route
- SHN Airport Information
- AWK Airport Information
- Facts about SHN
- Facts about AWK
- Map of Nearest Airports to SHN
- List of Nearest Airports to SHN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SHN
- List of Furthest Airports from SHN
- Map of Nearest Airports to AWK
- List of Nearest Airports to AWK
- Map of Furthest Airports from AWK
- List of Furthest Airports from AWK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sanderson Field (SHN), Shelton, Washington, United States and Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,329 miles (or 6,967 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 Sanderson Field and Wake Island Airfield, 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 Sanderson Field and Wake Island Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SHN / KSHN |
Airport Name: | Sanderson Field |
Location: | Shelton, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°14'0"N by 123°8'50"W |
Area Served: | Shelton, Washington |
Operator/Owner: | Port of Shelton |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 273 feet (83 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SHN |
More Information: | SHN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AWK / PWAK |
Airport Name: | Wake Island Airfield |
Location: | Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 19°16'56"N by 166°38'12"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 23 feet (7 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AWK |
More Information: | AWK Maps & Info |
Facts about Sanderson Field (SHN):
- Services at Sanderson include minor airframe and powerplant repair by Olympic Air.
- The furthest airport from Sanderson Field (SHN) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,810 miles (17,397 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Because of Sanderson Field's relatively low elevation of 273 feet, planes can take off or land at Sanderson Field 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.
- Sanderson Field originally operated under the name Mason County Airport.
- Sanderson Field (SHN) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Sanderson Field (SHN) is Olympia Regional Airport (OLM), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSE of SHN.
Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):
- Japan Airlines used both Wake Island and Honolulu as stops on its initial Tokyo-San Francisco service using Douglas DC-6s in the mid-1950s.
- Because of Wake Island Airfield's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at Wake Island Airfield 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 Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is located 11,652 miles (18,752 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
- The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
- Between 5 and 29 May 1935, Pan American's air base construction vessel, North Haven, landed supplies and equipment on Wilkes Island for eventual rehandling to Peale Island which, because of its more suitable soil and geology, had been selected as site for the PAA seaplane base.