Nonstop flight route between Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Wichita Falls, Texas, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WXF to SPS:
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- About this route
- WXF Airport Information
- SPS Airport Information
- Facts about WXF
- Facts about SPS
- Map of Nearest Airports to WXF
- List of Nearest Airports to WXF
- Map of Furthest Airports from WXF
- List of Furthest Airports from WXF
- Map of Nearest Airports to SPS
- List of Nearest Airports to SPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPS
- List of Furthest Airports from SPS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,758 miles (or 7,658 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 MDPGA Wethersfield 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 MDPGA Wethersfield 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:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WXF / EGVT |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Braintree, England, United Kingdom |
| GPS Coordinates: | 51°58'26"N by 0°30'21"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
| Airport Type: | Military airfield, private airfield |
| Elevation: | 322 feet (98 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from WXF |
| More Information: | WXF Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SPS / KSPS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Wichita Falls, Texas, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°59'20"N by 98°29'30"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from SPS |
| More Information: | SPS Maps & Info |
Facts about MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF):
- Because of MDPGA Wethersfield's relatively low elevation of 322 feet, planes can take off or land at MDPGA Wethersfield 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 "MDPGA Wethersfield", another name for WXF is "RAF Wethersfield".
- Starting in July 1966, bases in Turkey, Spain, and Italy were transferred from Tactical Air Command to USAFE.
- MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) has 3 runways.
- The closest airport to MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is London Stansted Airport (STN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of WXF.
- The furthest airport from MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,856 miles (19,080 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- During the late 1940s the base was used as a winter camping ground for Chipperfield's Circus.
- On 6 June 1982 614 VGS moved to MDPGA Wethersfield from RAF Debden, as that base was required for tank training.
Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):
- In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
- The 3950th Technical Training Wing was designated the Sheppard Technical Training Center 1 January 1959.
- As of September 2013, Brigadier General Scott Kindsvater is the commander of the 82d Training Wing, and he concurrently serves as the installation commander of Sheppard AFB.
- The 80th Flying Training Wing, also at Sheppard, conducts the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training program, a multi-nationally manned and managed flying training program chartered to produce combat pilots for both USAF and NATO.
- Sheppard Field reached its peak strength of 46,340 people while serving as a separation center for troops being discharged following World War II from September through November 1945.
- 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.
- Sheppard Air Force Base is named in honor of Senator John Morris Sheppard of Texas, chairman of the Senate Military Affairs Committee from 1933 until his death on 9 April 1941.
- The 80th Flying Training Wing began conducting the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program in 1981.
- 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.
