Nonstop flight route between Knob Noster, Missouri, United States and Shimojishima, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States and Shimojishima Airport (SHI), Shimojishima, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,383 miles (or 11,881 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 Shimojishima 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 Shimojishima 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):

• In the opening months of 1945 Sedalia AAFld began converting from C-47s to C-46s.
• 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 closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
• Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 2 miles south of Knob Noster, Missouri.
• The Air National Guard 131st Bomb Wing and the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing have a unique relationship at Whiteman AFB, in that members of the two units work side-by-side on a daily basis, although the majority of the 131st Bomb Wing visits Whiteman only one weekend per month for drill.
• Other aircraft assigned to Whiteman include the A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack fighter.
• The contractors used 168,000 yards of concrete, 25,355 tons of reinforcing steel and 15,120 tons of structural steel.
• In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
• In addition, the wing boasts the 442nd Medical Squadron, as well as a wing staff.

Facts about Shimojishima Airport (SHI):

• On July 22, 1994 Japan Transocean Air suspended flights.
• Because of Shimojishima Airport's relatively low elevation of 25 feet, planes can take off or land at Shimojishima 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 closest airport to Shimojishima Airport (SHI) is Miyako Airport (MMY), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ESE of SHI.
• The furthest airport from Shimojishima Airport (SHI) is Guaraní International Airport (AGT), which is nearly antipodal to Shimojishima Airport (meaning Shimojishima Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Guaraní International Airport), and is located 12,393 miles (19,945 kilometers) away in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay.
• In addition to being known as "Shimojishima Airport", other names for SHI include "下地島空港" and "Shimojishima Kūkō".
• As of 2005, the airport was in use as a training facility for Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways.
• In 2010, there were renewed protests against proposals to turn Shimoji Airport into a permanent USMC post.
• In the anime Stratos 4, set in an alternate timeline, Shimojishima Airport had become Shimoji airbase sometime after the year 1984.
• Shimojishima Airport (SHI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport, also known as Shimoji Airport, was originally built as a 'training airport' for commercial pilots, with a secondary role as a alternative landing site for intercontinental supersonic airliners.