Nonstop flight route between Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt (SSH), Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,235 miles (or 13,253 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 Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt and Buka Island 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 Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt and Buka Island 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 Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt (SSH):

• The closest airport to Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt (SSH) is St. Catherine International Airport (SKV), which is located 53 miles (85 kilometers) NNW of SSH.
• On January 3, 2004, Flash Airlines Flight 604 crashed in the Red Sea shortly after taking off from Sharm el-Sheikh, killing all aboard.
• In addition to being known as "Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt", another name for SSH is "مطار شرم الشيخ الدولي".
• Because of Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt's relatively low elevation of 143 feet, planes can take off or land at Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt 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 furthest airport from Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt (SSH) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,911 miles (19,169 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• The airport is the third busiest airport in Egypt after Cairo International Airport and Hurghada International Airport.
• Sharm el-Sheikh International Airpoirt (SSH) has 2 runways.

Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):

• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Today the airport is the primary air portal into Bougainville, and even 60 years after the war, wreckage from the military use of the airfield by the Japanese and Americans is easily found in the area.
• The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
• The furthest airport from Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
• Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island 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 origins of the airfield begin in 1941 when Australian troops built gun pits around a primitive airstrip in December 1941.