Nonstop flight route between Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SPS to JNB:
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- About this route
- SPS Airport Information
- JNB Airport Information
- Facts about SPS
- Facts about JNB
- Map of Nearest Airports to SPS
- List of Nearest Airports to SPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPS
- List of Furthest Airports from SPS
- Map of Nearest Airports to JNB
- List of Nearest Airports to JNB
- Map of Furthest Airports from JNB
- List of Furthest Airports from JNB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,241 miles (or 14,872 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 Sheppard Air Force Base and O. R. Tambo 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 Sheppard Air Force Base and O. R. Tambo International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SPS / KSPS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Wichita Falls, Texas, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°59'20"N by 98°29'30"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from SPS |
| More Information: | SPS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | JNB / FAOR |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa |
| GPS Coordinates: | 26°8'21"S by 28°14'45"E |
| Area Served: | Johannesburg, South Africa Pretoria, South Africa |
| Operator/Owner: | Airports Company South Africa |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5558 feet (1,694 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from JNB |
| More Information: | JNB Maps & Info |
Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):
- As of September 2013, Brigadier General Scott Kindsvater is the commander of the 82d Training Wing, and he concurrently serves as the installation commander of Sheppard AFB.
- The 3950th Technical Training Wing was designated the Sheppard Technical Training Center 1 January 1959.
- In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
- The furthest airport from Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,952 miles (17,626 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- It was officially opened as an Army Air Corps training center on 17 October 1941, following the arrival of the first military members on 14 June.
- The closest airport to Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Kickapoo Downtown Airport (KIP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) S of SPS.
- The Air Force School of Health Care Sciences offered training in dentistry, medicine, nursing, and health-services administration.
Facts about O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB):
- In addition to being known as "O. R. Tambo International Airport", another name for JNB is "Johannesburg International Airport".
- O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) has 2 runways.
- On 10 January 2013 the airport's ICAO code was changed from FAJS to FAOR.
- During busy periods, outbound flights use the western runway for take-off, while inbound flights use the eastern runway for landing.
- In November 2009 Air France announced the scheduled flights of their Airbus A380 into Johannesburg's O.R.
- O. R. Tambo International Airport handled 18,794,897 passengers last year.
- Because of O. R. Tambo International Airport's high elevation of 5,558 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at JNB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make JNB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Critics noted the considerable expense involved in renaming the airport, and the decision to use a politician as the name would be obscure, confusing and in some instances, offensive.
- The furthest airport from O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,979 miles (19,279 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
- The closest airport to O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Rand Airport (QRA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SW of JNB.
