Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,046 miles (or 6,511 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 RAF Lakenheath, 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 RAF Lakenheath. 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):

• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• 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.
• 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 363d TFW received its first F-16 on 26 March 1982.
• Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.
• 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 RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948.
• RAF Lakenheath, and nearby, RAF Mildenhall, are the two main U.S.
• In response to the threat by the Soviet Union, by the 1948 Berlin blockade, President Truman decided to realign USAFE into a permanent combat-capable force.
• By 1950, Lakenheath was one of three main operating bases for the U.S.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• A near nuclear accident occurred on 27 July 1956 – when a B-47 bomber crashed into a storage igloo at Lakenheath containing three MK-6 nuclear weapons while on a routine training mission.
• The work entailed removal of the existing runways and laying new ones comprising 12 inches of high-grade concrete.