Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Aomori, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Aomori Airport (AOJ), Aomori, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,649 miles (or 10,700 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 Aomori 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 Aomori 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):

• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• Shaw Air Force Base is named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lieutenant Ervin David Shaw.
• 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.
• Shaw Army Airfield was designated a permanent Army Air Forces instantiation after the war, being transferred to Continental Air Forces on 16 April 1945.
• The 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Aomori Airport (AOJ):

• Aomori Airport (AOJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Aomori Airport (AOJ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,507 miles (18,518 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Aomori Airport is a regional airport located 11.2 km south southwest of Aomori Station in Aomori, a city in the Aomori Prefecture of Japan.
• Because of Aomori Airport's relatively low elevation of 650 feet, planes can take off or land at Aomori 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.
• In 2005, the runway was extended to 3000 meters and the instrument landing system upgraded to handle Cat-3a fog conditions.
• The closest airport to Aomori Airport (AOJ) is Misawa Air Base 三沢飛行場 Misawa Hikōjō (MSJ), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) E of AOJ.
• In 1998, Air Nippon began operations to Sendai Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Aomori Airport", other names for AOJ include "青森空港" and "Aomori Kūkō".