Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Masai Mara, Kenya:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Mara Serena Airport (MRE), Masai Mara, Kenya would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,720 miles (or 12,425 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 Mara Serena 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 Mara Serena 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):

• Over the next four decades, the squadrons under the 363d TRW changed frequently.
• 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.
• 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 Field was activated on 30 August 1941 and placed under the jurisdiction of the Army Air Corps Southeast Air Corps Training Center.
• After the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military branch in September 1947, Shaw Army Airfield was renamed Shaw Air Force Base, on 13 January 1948 and the 20th Fighter-Bomber Wing was activated on 15 August 1947 with the implementation of the Hobson Plan.
• As a result of the August 1992 destruction of Homestead AFB Florida by Hurricane Andrew in September 1992, the 31st Fighter Wing's 309th Fighter Squadron was initially evacuated to Shaw AFB prior to the hurricane making landfall.
• On March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.

Facts about Mara Serena Airport (MRE):

• Mara Serena Airport lies approximately 225 kilometres southwest of Nairobi International Airport, Kenya's largest civilian airport.
• Because of Mara Serena Airport's high elevation of 5,600 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at MRE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make MRE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• In addition to being known as "Mara Serena Airport", another name for MRE is "n/a".
• The furthest airport from Mara Serena Airport (MRE) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,582 miles (18,640 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• The closest airport to Mara Serena Airport (MRE) is Kericho Airport (KEY), which is located 72 miles (116 kilometers) NNE of MRE.
• Mara Serena Airport is a small civilian airport, serving Masai Mara and the neighboring communities.
• Mara Serena Airport (MRE) currently has only 1 runway.