Nonstop flight route between Grottaglie, Puglia, Italy and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR), Grottaglie, Puglia, Italy and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,109 miles (or 8,222 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport and Shaw Air Force Base, 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport and Shaw Air Force Base. 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 Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR):

• Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Taranto-Grottaglie Airport", other names for TAR include "Aeroporto di Taranto-Grottaglie" and "Taranto Grottaglie".
• During World War II, Grottaglie Airfield was a military airfield used by the United States Army Air Forces.
• The furthest airport from Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,692 miles (18,817 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Taranto-Grottaglie Airport's relatively low elevation of 215 feet, planes can take off or land at Taranto-Grottaglie 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 airport resides at an elevation of 215 feet above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to Taranto-Grottaglie Airport (TAR) is Brindisi – Salento Airport (BDS), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) ENE of TAR.

Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):

• Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
• The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
• 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.
• For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
• In addition to the 363d TRW, Headquarters Ninth Air Force was transferred to Shaw from Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina on 1 September 1954.
• With the closure of Myrtle Beach Air Force Base South Carolina and the inactivation of the 354th Fighter Wing, the 21st Tactical Fighter Squadron was activated at Shaw and received 30 Republic A/OA-10 Thunderbolt IIs from the inactivating 355th Fighter Squadron on 1 April 1992.
• On 25 June 1953, the 66th TRW departed Shaw, being reassigned to Sembach Air Base, West Germany.