Nonstop flight route between Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Knoxville, Tennessee, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SPS to TYS:
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- About this route
- SPS Airport Information
- TYS Airport Information
- Facts about SPS
- Facts about TYS
- 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 TYS
- List of Nearest Airports to TYS
- Map of Furthest Airports from TYS
- List of Furthest Airports from TYS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS), Knoxville, Tennessee, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 830 miles (or 1,336 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 McGhee Tyson Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
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: | TYS / KTYS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Knoxville, Tennessee, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 35°48'39"N by 83°59'38"W |
| Area Served: | Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Operator/Owner: | Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 981 feet (299 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from TYS |
| More Information: | TYS Maps & Info |
Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):
- In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
- The 3630th Flying Training Wing also provided undergraduate pilot training for pilots of the Republic of Vietnam Air Force from 1971 to 1975.
- 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 host unit on Sheppard Air Force Base is the 82nd Training Wing whose mission makes it the most diversified training base within the Air Education and Training Command.
- Sheppard AFB shares one runway with Wichita Falls Municipal Airport under a joint civil-military arrangement.
- During World War II, then-Sheppard Field conducted basic training, and it also trained glider mechanics, technical and flying training instructors and B-29 Superfortress flight engineers.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 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.
- 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.
Facts about McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS):
- Owned by the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, it sees several major airlines and connection carriers.
- The development of TYS helped the City of Alcoa diversify its economy and gain its economic independence from what is today Alcoa Inc., the world's third largest producer of aluminum.
- The 134 ARW, which is operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command, operates KC-135R Stratotankers for both air mobility and aerial refueling of military aircraft.
- In addition to being known as "McGhee Tyson Airport", another name for TYS is "McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base".
- McGhee Tyson Airport has two levels.
- McGhee Tyson Airport covers 2,250 acres at an elevation of 981 feet above mean sea level.
- The closest airport to McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is Gatlinburg–Pigeon Forge Airport (GKT), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) E of TYS.
- McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) has 2 runways.
- Because of McGhee Tyson Airport's relatively low elevation of 981 feet, planes can take off or land at McGhee Tyson 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.
- This airport is in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which called it a primary commercial service airport since it has over 10,000 passenger boardings per year.Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 841,237 enplanements in 2011, an increase from 804,917 in 2010.
- The furthest airport from McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,348 miles (18,263 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- McGhee Tyson Airport handled 1,688,882 passengers last year.
