Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Melilla, (Spanish exclave in Morocco):

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Melilla Airport (MLN), Melilla, (Spanish exclave in Morocco) would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,286 miles (or 6,897 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 Melilla 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 Melilla 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):

• On March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.
• 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.
• In October 1942, the flight training was changed to Advanced flying training and AT-6 Texan single-engine and Beech AT-10 twin-engine trainers were used.
• By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of 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.

Facts about Melilla Airport (MLN):

• In addition to being known as "Melilla Airport", another name for MLN is "Aeropuerto de Melilla".
• The furthest airport from Melilla Airport (MLN) is Great Barrier Aerodrome (GBZ), which is nearly antipodal to Melilla Airport (meaning Melilla Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Great Barrier Aerodrome), and is located 12,326 miles (19,837 kilometers) away in Great Barrier Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Melilla Airport (MLN) is Cherif Al Idrissi Airport (AHU), which is located 50 miles (81 kilometers) W of MLN.
• In the past Melilla was also served by Spantax from 1969-1981, Aviaco from 1981-1992 and Binter Mediterraneo from 1992-2001.
• Because of Melilla Airport's relatively low elevation of 156 feet, planes can take off or land at Melilla 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.
• Melilla Airport (MLN) currently has only 1 runway.