Nonstop flight route between Smithton, Tasmania, Australia and Galena, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SIO to GAL:
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- About this route
- SIO Airport Information
- GAL Airport Information
- Facts about SIO
- Facts about GAL
- Map of Nearest Airports to SIO
- List of Nearest Airports to SIO
- Map of Furthest Airports from SIO
- List of Furthest Airports from SIO
- Map of Nearest Airports to GAL
- List of Nearest Airports to GAL
- Map of Furthest Airports from GAL
- List of Furthest Airports from GAL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Smithton Airport (SIO), Smithton, Tasmania, Australia and Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), Galena, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,935 miles (or 12,770 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 Smithton Airport and Edward G. Pitka Sr. 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 Smithton Airport and Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SIO / YSMI |
Airport Name: | Smithton Airport |
Location: | Smithton, Tasmania, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 40°50'6"S by 145°4'59"E |
Operator/Owner: | DIER |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 31 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SIO |
More Information: | SIO Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GAL / PAGA |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Galena, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 64°44'9"N by 156°56'15"W |
Area Served: | Galena, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | State of Alaska DOT&PF - Northern Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 153 feet (47 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from GAL |
More Information: | GAL Maps & Info |
Facts about Smithton Airport (SIO):
- Because of Smithton Airport's relatively low elevation of 31 feet, planes can take off or land at Smithton 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 Smithton Airport (SIO) is Burnie Airport (BWT), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) ESE of SIO.
- The furthest airport from Smithton Airport (SIO) is Corvo Airport (CVU), which is nearly antipodal to Smithton Airport (meaning Smithton Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Corvo Airport), and is located 12,221 miles (19,667 kilometers) away in Corvo Island, Azores, Portugal.
- Smithton Airport (SIO) has 2 runways.
Facts about Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL):
- In addition to being known as "Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport", another name for GAL is "(former Galena Air Force Base)".
- As Galena Airport, it was used as a military transport base during World War II, facilitating the transit of Lend-Lease aircraft to the Soviet Union.
- Because of Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport's relatively low elevation of 153 feet, planes can take off or land at Edward G. Pitka Sr. 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 airport also sports a ski-jump takeoff ramp at one end and provisions for arresting gear at the other, a leftover from the Cold War years as Galena Air Force Base, as tactical aircraft required more landing and takeoff space than was available on the runway.
- The furthest airport from Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,313 miles (16,598 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
- Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is Koyukuk Airport (KYU), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) WNW of GAL.
- As Galena Air Force Base, it was used by the USAF during the Cold War as an interceptor base for aircraft patrolling the western areas of Alaska.