Nonstop flight route between Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Lugano, Agno, Switzerland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Lugano Airport (LUG), Lugano, Agno, Switzerland would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,300 miles (or 8,530 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 Lugano 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 Lugano 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 Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):

• Helicopter pilot training was transferred from Stead AFB, Nevada in October 1965, with H-19, H-43, Bell TH-1F, CH-3C and HH-3E helicopters used for training.
• Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located five miles north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 3630th Flying Training Wing was activated in 1965, and it assumed the helicopter training program.

Facts about Lugano Airport (LUG):

• In addition to being known as "Lugano Airport", another name for LUG is "Aeroporto di Lugano".
• Lugano Airport is a regional airport located 4 km west of the Swiss city of Lugano, in the municipalities of Agno, Bioggio and Muzzano.
• The furthest airport from Lugano Airport (LUG) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Lugano Airport (meaning Lugano Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,134 miles (19,527 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport's instrument approach procedure is quite challenging because of its steep angle of descent of 6.65°, more than double of the standard approach angle of 3°.
• A shuttle bus connects the airport with Lugano railway station and city centre, meeting most scheduled flights.
• Because of Lugano Airport's relatively low elevation of 915 feet, planes can take off or land at Lugano 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 Lugano Airport (LUG) is Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) SSW of LUG.
• The airport has a single, bi-directional runway with an asphalt surface, identified as 01/19.
• Lugano Airport (LUG) currently has only 1 runway.