Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Cognac / Châteaubernard, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (CNG), Cognac / Châteaubernard, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,151 miles (or 6,681 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 Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base, 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 Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base. 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):

• On March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.
• 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 9 August 1990, the 17th and 33d TFS of 363d TFW became the first F-16 squadrons to deploy to the United Arab Emirates in Operation Desert Shield.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.

Facts about Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (CNG):

• In addition to being known as "Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base", another name for CNG is "Base aérienne 709 Cognac-Châteaubernard".
• Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (CNG) has 2 runways.
• Because of Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base's relatively low elevation of 102 feet, planes can take off or land at Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base 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 furthest airport from Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (CNG) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (meaning Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,208 miles (19,647 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Cognac - Châteaubernard Air Base (CNG) is Angoulême - Brie - Champniers Airport (ANG), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) E of CNG.