Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Caen, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Caen la Mer Airport (CFR), Caen, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,068 miles (or 6,548 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 Caen la Mer 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 Caen la Mer 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 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.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
• 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.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• The 66th TRW was formed at Shaw from the RB-26 assets of the 18th TRS and RF-80s transferred from South Korea.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• 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 March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.

Facts about Caen la Mer Airport (CFR):

• The furthest airport from Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Caen la Mer Airport (meaning Caen la Mer Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,021 miles (19,345 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) is Deauville - Saint-Gatien Airport (DOL), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of CFR.
• Because of Caen la Mer Airport's relatively low elevation of 256 feet, planes can take off or land at Caen la Mer 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.
• Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Caen la Mer Airport", another name for CFR is "Aéroport de Caen la Mer".