Nonstop flight route between Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Strandhill (near Sligo), Ireland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL), Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Sligo Airport (SXL), Strandhill (near Sligo), Ireland would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,750 miles (or 17,300 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 Sligo 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and Sligo 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 Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL):

• In addition to being known as "Illawarra Regional Airport", another name for WOL is "Wollongong Airport".
• Following the war, Trans Australia Airlines and Australian National Airways linked the airport with Canberra and Melbourne until 1950.
• There is no control tower located at the airport and pilots must co-ordinate arrivals and departures using a Common Traffic Advisory Frequency, aided by an Aerodrome Frequency Response Unit, which notifies pilots that their transmissions have been received on the frequency and activates lighting systems as appropriate.
• 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.
• 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.
• The primary runway is 16/34, with a paved surface measuring 1,819 m × 30 m.
• The closest airport to Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Camden Aerodrome (CDU), which is located 36 miles (59 kilometers) N of WOL.
• Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) has 2 runways.
• The Illawarra Regional Airport provides a cost effective alternative to the Sydney Basin airports for light aircraft users.

Facts about Sligo Airport (SXL):

• Sligo Airport (SXL) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Sligo Airport (SXL) is Ireland West Airport Knock (NOC), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) SSW of SXL.
• On 21 February 2007, The Irish Government announced that it would be giving €8.5 million to the airport in capital grant money to upgrade the runway and add approach lighting and safety enhancements.
• The furthest airport from Sligo Airport (SXL) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,907 miles (19,162 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Because of Sligo Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Sligo 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.
• In addition to being known as "Sligo Airport", another name for SXL is "Aerfort Shligigh".