Nonstop flight route between Værøy, Nordland, Norway and Wichita Falls, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Værøy Heliport (VRY), Værøy, Nordland, Norway and Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,577 miles (or 7,365 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 Værøy Heliport and Sheppard 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 Værøy Heliport and Sheppard 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 Værøy Heliport (VRY):

• The furthest airport from Værøy Heliport (VRY) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 10,759 miles (17,314 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Værøy Heliport (VRY) is Røst Airport (RET), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) WSW of VRY.
• Proposals for an airport at Værøy and Røst were launched in the late 1960s.
• Lufttransport won the tender valid from 1 August 2005, winning ahead of CHC with a bid of NOK 56 million.
• Widerøe commenced seaplane operates to Værøy from 1965.
• Værøy Heliport handled 10,210 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Værøy Heliport", another name for VRY is "Værøy helikopterhavn".
• One of the helicopters was bought by Widerøe in December 1976 and the operations were subcontracted to Offshore Helicopters.
• Nordland County Municipality started a helicopter service from Værøy to Bodø on 1 January 1993, using the old heliport at Hanna Bakken-jordet.
• Værøy Heliport is located at Tobbisodden, the outer-most point of Kvitvarden near the village of Sørland on the island of Værøy.
• The airport was closed immediately after the accident.
• Because of Værøy Heliport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Værøy Heliport 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.

Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):

• In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
• Additionally, officers from all 13 participating nations fill subordinate leadership positions throughout the wing.
• The 3630th Flying Training Wing was activated in 1965, and it assumed the helicopter training program.
• During World War II, then-Sheppard Field conducted basic training, and it also trained glider mechanics, technical and flying training instructors and B-29 Superfortress flight engineers.
• The furthest airport from Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,952 miles (17,626 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Kickapoo Downtown Airport (KIP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) S of SPS.