Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Bălţi, Moldova:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport (BZY), Bălţi, Moldova would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,259 miles (or 8,464 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 Bălți-Leadoveni International 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 Bălți-Leadoveni International 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 closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• On 25 June 1953, the 66th TRW departed Shaw, being reassigned to Sembach Air Base, West Germany.
• On 1 April 1945 jurisdiction of Shaw Field was transferred to First Air Force.
• 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.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• 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 Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport (BZY):

• Bălți International Airport can be easily accessed by car, exiting Bălți in the northern direction, and following the highway E583.
• Because of Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport's relatively low elevation of 758 feet, planes can take off or land at Bălți-Leadoveni International 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.
• Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport (BZY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport (BZY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,243 miles (18,093 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• For cargo, different modifications of Antonov jets have used the runway.
• In addition to being known as "Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport", another name for BZY is "Aeroportul Internațional Leadoveni".
• The Bălți International Airport is situated in the northern part of the former Bălţi County, on the land of the commune of Corlăteni in Râşcani district.
• One third of all passengers on the daily route Chișinău-Frankfurt am Main come from Bălți and the northern districts of Moldova.
• Bălți International Airport used to be a home base for Tu-134 and Tu-154 passenger jets.
• The closest airport to Bălți-Leadoveni International Airport (BZY) is Iași International Airport (IAS), which is located 46 miles (75 kilometers) S of BZY.
• As Moldova was experiencing economic crisis in the 1990s, the re-construction and modernization plans of the airport, as well as the whole aviation industry, were put on hold.