Nonstop flight route between Spokane, Washington, United States and Benguela, Angola:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA), Spokane, Washington, United States and Benguela Airport (BUG), Benguela, Angola would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,733 miles (or 14,054 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 Fairchild Air Force Base and Benguela 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 Fairchild Air Force Base and Benguela 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 Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA):

• On 23 January 1987, following the inactivation of the 47th Air Division at Fairchild, the 92nd Bombardment Wing was reassigned to the 57th Air Division at Minot AFB, North Dakota.
• The furthest airport from Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,665 miles (17,163 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In late 1974, the Air Force announced plans to convert the 141st Fighter Interceptor Group of the Washington Air National Guard, an F-101 Voodoo unit at Geiger Field, to an air refueling mission with KC-135 aircraft.
• The weapons storage area for the bombers was located south of the runway at Deep Creek Air Force Station, a separate installation constructed from 1950 to 1953 by the Atomic Energy Commission and operated by the Air Materiel Command.
• In addition to being known as "Fairchild Air Force Base", another name for SKA is "Fairchild AFB".
• The closest airport to Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Spokane International Airport (GEG), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) E of SKA.
• Following Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, a total of 560 base personnel deployed to Desert Shield and Desert Storm from August 1990 to March 1991.
• In 1956 the wing began a conversion that brought the B-52 Stratofortress to Fairchild, followed by the KC-135 Stratotanker in 1958.
• On 24 June 1994 one of the few remaining B-52H aircraft at Fairchild crashed during a practice flight for an upcoming air show, killing all four crew members.

Facts about Benguela Airport (BUG):

• In addition to being known as "Benguela Airport", other names for BUG include "Benguela/Monbaca Airport (Benguela)", "Aeroporto de Benguela" and "Benguela Airport".
• Benguela Airport (BUG) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Benguela Airport (BUG) is Waku Kungo Airport/Cela (CEO), which is located 141 miles (227 kilometers) NE of BUG.
• The furthest airport from Benguela Airport (BUG) is Johnston Atoll Airport (JON), which is nearly antipodal to Benguela Airport (meaning Benguela Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Johnston Atoll Airport), and is located 12,091 miles (19,459 kilometers) away in Johnston Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.
• Because of Benguela Airport's relatively low elevation of 118 feet, planes can take off or land at Benguela 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.