Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Cape Palmas, Liberia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Cape Palmas Airport (CPA), Cape Palmas, Liberia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,064 miles (or 8,150 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 Cape Palmas 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 Cape Palmas 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.
• Over the next four decades, the squadrons under the 363d TRW changed frequently.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
• 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.
• Shaw Field was activated on 30 August 1941 and placed under the jurisdiction of the Army Air Corps Southeast Air Corps Training Center.
• The 432nd's mission at Shaw AFB was to assume the reconnaissance training mission that was handled previously by the 363d TRW.
• Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
• 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.

Facts about Cape Palmas Airport (CPA):

• Because of Cape Palmas Airport's relatively low elevation of 20 feet, planes can take off or land at Cape Palmas 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.
• Cape Palmas Airport (CPA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Cape Palmas Airport (CPA) is Sasstown Airport (SAZ), which is located 54 miles (88 kilometers) WNW of CPA.
• The furthest airport from Cape Palmas Airport (CPA) is Aranuka Airport (AAK), which is nearly antipodal to Cape Palmas Airport (meaning Cape Palmas Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aranuka Airport), and is located 12,108 miles (19,486 kilometers) away in Aranuka, Kiribati.