Nonstop flight route between Knob Noster, Missouri, United States and Axum, Ethiopia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States and Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (AXU), Axum, Ethiopia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,662 miles (or 12,330 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 Whiteman Air Force Base and Axum Emperor Yohannes IV 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 Whiteman Air Force Base and Axum Emperor Yohannes IV 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 Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):

• The 131st Bomb Wing is a unit of the Missouri Air National Guard.
• The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
• The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The host unit at Whiteman AFB is the 509th Bomb Wing, assigned to the Eighth Air Force of the Air Force Global Strike Command.
• In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
• In May 1942, construction workers descended upon an area known to locals as the "Blue Flats" because of the color of the soil and began building a railroad spur for the new air base.
• The 509th Force Support Squadron is a part of the * 509th Mission Support Group at Whiteman AFB Missouri.
• The contractors used 168,000 yards of concrete, 25,355 tons of reinforcing steel and 15,120 tons of structural steel.
• The 476th Fighter Group, stationed at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, is an Air Force Reserve Command unit linked to the 23rd Fighter Group at Moody.

Facts about Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (AXU):

• The furthest airport from Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (AXU) is Fangatau Airport (FGU), which is nearly antipodal to Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (meaning Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Fangatau Airport), and is located 12,318 miles (19,824 kilometers) away in Fangatau, French Polynesia.
• Because of Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport's high elevation of 6,916 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at AXU. Combined with a high temperature, this could make AXU a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (AXU) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 2 May 1987, Douglas C-47A ET-AGT of Ethiopian Airlines was destroyed on the ground in an attack on the airport by Ethiopian Air Force MiG-23s.
• Axum Airport resides at an elevation of 2,108 metres above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport (AXU) is Alula Aba Nega Airport (MQX), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) SE of AXU.
• In addition to being known as "Axum Emperor Yohannes IV Airport", another name for AXU is "የአክሱም ዮሃነስ አራት የአየር ማረፊያ".