Nonstop flight route between Falalop Island, Yap, Federated States of Micronesia and Detroit, Michigan, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Falalop Airfield (ULI), Falalop Island, Yap, Federated States of Micronesia and Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP), Detroit, Michigan, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,906 miles (or 12,723 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 Falalop Airfield and Willow Run Airport (YIP), 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 Falalop Airfield and Willow Run Airport (YIP). 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 Falalop Airfield (ULI):

• Falalop Airfield or Naval Air Base Ulithi is a former World War II airfield on the island of Falalop, part of Ulithi Atoll in the Caroline Islands.
• The closest airport to Falalop Airfield (ULI) is Yap International Airport (YAP), which is located 122 miles (196 kilometers) WSW of ULI.
• Units stationed at Falalop included VMD-354 operating photo-reconnaissance F4Us and VMF-542 operating F6F-3N night-fighters.
• The furthest airport from Falalop Airfield (ULI) is Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho Airport (PNZ), which is nearly antipodal to Falalop Airfield (meaning Falalop Airfield is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Petrolina–Senador Nilo Coelho Airport), and is located 12,385 miles (19,931 kilometers) away in Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil.
• Marine Air Group 45 deployed to Falalop in late September to establish base operations.

Facts about Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP):

• The Willow Run plant was gigantic.
• Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP) has 4 runways.
• The Willow Run bomber plant had many problems at startup, due in part to the mindsets and technical skills of both management and labor, who were each accustomed to the requirements of auto production, finding it difficult at first to adapt to the higher precision required in aircraft production.
• Because of Willow Run Airport (YIP)'s relatively low elevation of 716 feet, planes can take off or land at Willow Run Airport (YIP) 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 Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP) is Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) E of YIP.
• Opened in 1942, "Willow Run" was synonymous with the American industrial effort that contributed so much to Allied victory in World War II.
• At about the same time it sold the airfield, the RFC leased the bomber plant to the Kaiser-Frazer automobile company.
• Willow Run transitioned to production of the B-24H in June 1943.
• Once production began, it became difficult to introduce changes dictated by field experience in the various overseas theaters onto the production line in a timely fashion.
• The furthest airport from Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,276 miles (18,147 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.