Nonstop flight route between Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Portland, Maine, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Portland International Jetport (PWM), Portland, Maine, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,647 miles (or 2,651 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 relatively short distance between Sheppard Air Force Base and Portland International Jetport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):

• Control and accountability for Sheppard Field was transferred to the Department of the Air Force 1 August 1948 and was reactivated 15 August 1948 to supplement Lackland AFB, Texas, as a basic training center renamed as Sheppard AFB.
• 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 80th FTW mission is to provide combat airpower by producing top quality fighter pilots for the NATO alliance.
• Sheppard Air Force Base is named in honor of Senator John Morris Sheppard of Texas, chairman of the Senate Military Affairs Committee from 1933 until his death on 9 April 1941.
• In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
• The aircraft mechanics school was transferred to Sheppard from Keesler AFB, Mississippi in April 1949 to make room for expansion of electronic training at that base.
• 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 Air Force School of Health Care Sciences offered training in dentistry, medicine, nursing, and health-services administration.

Facts about Portland International Jetport (PWM):

• The present airport started to take shape in the 1950s.
• Portland International Jetport (PWM) has 2 runways.
• 1987 saw the arrival of Continental Airlines, when the airline bought PEOPLExpress and took over their routes.
• Peoplexpress Airlines arrived in 1983, the first jet competitor to Northeast/Delta at PWM.
• The closest airport to Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Naval Air Station Brunswick (NHZ), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of PWM.
• In June 1983 United Airlines arrived in Portland, planning to be the only airline to serve 50 states.
• Some service began to return as the industry's economics improved in 2005 and 2006.
• Because of Portland International Jetport's relatively low elevation of 76 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland International Jetport 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.
• Jet flights began in 1968, and for the first time Portland got a nonstop beyond Boston when Northeast DC-9s flew to La Guardia.
• The furthest airport from Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,705 miles (18,838 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.