Nonstop flight route between Spangdahlem, Germany and Wallops Island, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM), Spangdahlem, Germany and Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL), Wallops Island, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,960 miles (or 6,373 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 Spangdahlem Air Base and Wallops Flight Facility 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 Spangdahlem Air Base and Wallops Flight Facility 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 Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM):

• The 49th received two Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards for F-105 operations at Spangdahlem.
• On 25 August 1959, the 49th Tactical Fighter Wing moved to Spangdahlem AB from the Etain-Rouvres Air Base, France, and assumed host unit duties.
• The closest airport to Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Bitburg Airport (BBJ), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of SPM.
• On 25 August 1959, the 10th TRW ended its six-year stay at Spangdahlem and moved to RAF Alconbury, United Kingdom.
• The furthest airport from Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,986 miles (19,289 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The 52 TFW gained its third fighter squadron with the activation of the 480th Tactical Fighter Squadron on 15 November 1976.
• In addition to being known as "Spangdahlem Air Base", another name for SPM is "Spangdahlem AB".
• The 726th AMS utilizes various aircraft maintenance equipment, de-icers, mission vehicles and aircraft loaders.

Facts about Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL):

• The WFF mobile range assets have been used to support rocket launches from locations in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, South America, Africa, Europe, Australia, and at sea.
• The Wallops mobile range instrumentation includes telemetry, radar, command and power systems.
• In the early years, research at Wallops concentrated on obtaining aerodynamic data at transonic and low supersonic speeds.
• The closest airport to Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Accomack County Airport (MFV), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SW of WAL.
• Because of Wallops Flight Facility Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wallops Flight Facility 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 furthest airport from Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,785 miles (18,965 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The Wallops Visitor Center has a variety of hands-on exhibits and hosts weekly educational activities and programs to enable children to explore and learn about the technologies designed and used by NASA researchers and scientists.
• Major Wallops facilities include FAA-certified runways.