Nonstop flight route between Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL), Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Patrick Air Force Base (COF), Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,406 miles (or 15,138 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and Patrick 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and Patrick 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 Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL):

• Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Illawarra Regional Airport", another name for WOL is "Wollongong Airport".
• The closest airport to Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Camden Aerodrome (CDU), which is located 36 miles (59 kilometers) N of WOL.
• Despite the length of the runway being sufficient for operating large passenger jets such as the Boeing 737, the pavements are currently only suitable for aircraft with a Maximum Takeoff Weight not exceeding 25,000 kilograms.
• The furthest airport from Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Horta International Airport (HOR), which is nearly antipodal to Illawarra Regional Airport (meaning Illawarra Regional Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Horta International Airport), and is located 12,162 miles (19,573 kilometers) away in Horta, Azores, Portugal.
• Following the war, Trans Australia Airlines and Australian National Airways linked the airport with Canberra and Melbourne until 1950.
• Because of Illawarra Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 31 feet, planes can take off or land at Illawarra Regional 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.

Facts about Patrick Air Force Base (COF):

• The base is a census-designated place and had a resident population of 1,222 at the 2010 census.
• During investigation by a board of inquiry regarding the entire Flight 19 incident, attention was given to the loss of the NAS Banana River-based PBM.
• In addition to being known as "Patrick Air Force Base", another name for COF is "Patrick AFB".
• The closest airport to Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Merritt Island Airport (COI), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NNW of COF.
• In February 2005, the Patrick AFB Officers Club was destroyed by an accidental fire.
• The 920th Rescue Wing, part of Air Force Reserve Command, is another tenant command headquartered at Patrick AFB and is the installation's only military flying unit.
• The furthest airport from Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,550 miles (18,587 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.