Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Bengbu, Anhui, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Bengbu Airport (BFU), Bengbu, Anhui, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,677 miles (or 12,356 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 Bengbu 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 Bengbu 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):

• The 432nd's mission at Shaw AFB was to assume the reconnaissance training mission that was handled previously by the 363d TRW.
• The squadrons flew the P-61 Black Widow in Europe with Ninth Air Force during World War II, and were reassigned back to the United States after the end of hostilities.
• 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 Army Airfield was designated a permanent Army Air Forces instantiation after the war, being transferred to Continental Air Forces on 16 April 1945.
• 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.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• On 25 June 1953, the 66th TRW departed Shaw, being reassigned to Sembach Air Base, West Germany.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.

Facts about Bengbu Airport (BFU):

• In August 2002, the new airport was opened for military use.
• In addition to being known as "Bengbu Airport", other names for BFU include "蚌埠机场" and "Bèngbù Jīchǎng".
• In 1997, land acquisition for the new airport started, and in May 1998, 4030 mu of land near Renheji village in Qinji Township was dedicated for the new airport.
• The furthest airport from Bengbu Airport (BFU) is Rosario – Islas Malvinas International Airport (ROS), which is nearly antipodal to Bengbu Airport (meaning Bengbu Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rosario – Islas Malvinas International Airport), and is located 12,327 miles (19,838 kilometers) away in Rosario, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Bengbu Airport (BFU) is Hefei Luogang International Airport (HFE), which is located 74 miles (119 kilometers) S of BFU.