Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Gdańsk, Poland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport (GDN), Gdańsk, Poland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,679 miles (or 7,530 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 Gdansk Lech Walesa 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 Gdansk Lech Walesa 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 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 closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• 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.
• Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
• 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.
• 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 1945 jurisdiction of Shaw Field was transferred to First Air Force.

Facts about Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport (GDN):

• Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport has operated as a private company since 1993.
• The furthest airport from Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport (GDN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,446 miles (18,421 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport (GDN) is Gdynia-Kosakowo Airport (QYD), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) N of GDN.
• Because of Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport's relatively low elevation of 489 feet, planes can take off or land at Gdansk Lech Walesa 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.
• In addition to being known as "Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport", other names for GDN include "Port Lotniczy Gdańsk im. Lecha Wałęsy" and "Gdańsk".
• Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport (GDN) currently has only 1 runway.