Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Laoag International Airport (LAO), Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,577 miles (or 13,804 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 Laoag International 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 Laoag International 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.
• The group initially conducted training with two squadrons flying the Republic RF-84F "Thunderflash" and two squadrons Group, was a part of Strategic Air Command from July 1947 – May 1951, at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana as an Air Force Reserve corollary unit under the guidance of active duty units in order to train and maintain currency in reconnaissance operations for its reserve personnel.
• Shaw Army Airfield was designated a permanent Army Air Forces instantiation after the war, being transferred to Continental Air Forces on 16 April 1945.
• Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
• 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.
• Following Desert Storm, the 19th and 33d Tactical Fighter Squadrons deployed to the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch, a coalition effort to enforce the Iraqi "No Fly Zone" south of the 32nd parallel north.
• 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 Laoag International Airport (LAO):

• The furthest airport from Laoag International Airport (LAO) is Puerto Suárez International Airport (PSZ), which is nearly antipodal to Laoag International Airport (meaning Laoag International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Puerto Suárez International Airport), and is located 12,316 miles (19,820 kilometers) away in Puerto Suárez, Bolivia.
• In addition to being known as "Laoag International Airport", another name for LAO is "Paliparang Pandaigdig ng LaoagSangalubong a Pagtayaban ti Laoag".
• Laoag International Airport (LAO) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Laoag International Airport's relatively low elevation of 16 feet, planes can take off or land at Laoag International 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.
• The closest airport to Laoag International Airport (LAO) is Tuguegarao Airport (TUG), which is located 87 miles (140 kilometers) ESE of LAO.
• Laoag International Airport handled 177,339 passengers last year.