Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Besalampy, Madagascar:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Besalampy Airport (BPY), Besalampy, Madagascar would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,846 miles (or 14,236 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 Besalampy 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 Besalampy 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):

• In October 1942, the flight training was changed to Advanced flying training and AT-6 Texan single-engine and Beech AT-10 twin-engine trainers were used.
• The 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.
• The 20th FG was reassigned to Langley AFB, Virginia on 1 December 1951 in preparation for a permanent overseas deployment to RAF Wethersfield, England to support NATO.
• The 20th Fighter Group was first equipped with North American P-51D, then exchanged its P-51's in February 1948 for F-84B Thunderjets, the first TAC group to receive operational F-84s.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• As a result of the August 1992 destruction of Homestead AFB Florida by Hurricane Andrew in September 1992, the 31st Fighter Wing's 309th Fighter Squadron was initially evacuated to Shaw AFB prior to the hurricane making landfall.

Facts about Besalampy Airport (BPY):

• Because of Besalampy Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Besalampy 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.
• The closest airport to Besalampy Airport (BPY) is Tambohorano Airport (WTA), which is located 61 miles (98 kilometers) SSW of BPY.
• The furthest airport from Besalampy Airport (BPY) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,139 miles (17,927 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.