Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Arrecife, Canary Islands, Spain:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Lanzarote Airport (ACE), Arrecife, Canary Islands, Spain would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,887 miles (or 6,255 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 Shaw Air Force Base and Lanzarote 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 Shaw Air Force Base and Lanzarote 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 Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• With the closure of Myrtle Beach Air Force Base South Carolina and the inactivation of the 354th Fighter Wing, the 21st Tactical Fighter Squadron was activated at Shaw and received 30 Republic A/OA-10 Thunderbolt IIs from the inactivating 355th Fighter Squadron on 1 April 1992.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• After the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military branch in September 1947, Shaw Army Airfield was renamed Shaw Air Force Base, on 13 January 1948 and the 20th Fighter-Bomber Wing was activated on 15 August 1947 with the implementation of the Hobson Plan.
• Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• On 1 April 1951, the 363d TRW was transferred to Shaw from Langley Air Force Base, Virginia The 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing would remain at Shaw, under various designations, for the next 43 years.
• The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Lanzarote Airport (ACE):

• In the 1930s a need for an aerodrome on the island became evident when connections were required with the other islands and the mainland, as well as a refuelling point for aircraft.
• The furthest airport from Lanzarote Airport (ACE) is Norfolk Island Airport (NLK), which is nearly antipodal to Lanzarote Airport (meaning Lanzarote Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Norfolk Island Airport), and is located 12,343 miles (19,865 kilometers) away in Norfolk Island, Australia.
• In addition to being known as "Lanzarote Airport", another name for ACE is "Aeropuerto de Lanzarote".
• Because of Lanzarote Airport's relatively low elevation of 47 feet, planes can take off or land at Lanzarote 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.
• Lanzarote Airport (ACE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Lanzarote Airport handled 5,334,598 passengers last year.
• In 1999 a new passenger terminal opened, with a capacity of 6 million passengers per annum.
• The closest airport to Lanzarote Airport (ACE) is Fuerteventura Airport (FUE), which is located 37 miles (60 kilometers) SSW of ACE.