Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Kolwezi, Lualaba District, Democratic Republic of the Congo:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Kolwezi Airport (KWZ), Kolwezi, Lualaba District, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,544 miles (or 12,141 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 Kolwezi 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 Kolwezi 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):

• Shaw Army Airfield was designated a permanent Army Air Forces instantiation after the war, being transferred to Continental Air Forces on 16 April 1945.
• 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 March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.
• 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 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.

Facts about Kolwezi Airport (KWZ):

• The furthest airport from Kolwezi Airport (KWZ) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,817 miles (19,018 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Kolwezi Airport (KWZ) is Solwezi Airport (SLI), which is located 113 miles (183 kilometers) SSE of KWZ.
• Because of Kolwezi Airport's high elevation of 5,007 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at KWZ. Combined with a high temperature, this could make KWZ a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Kolwezi Airport (KWZ) currently has only 1 runway.