Nonstop flight route between Christmas Island, Australia and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from XCH to SSC:
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- About this route
- XCH Airport Information
- SSC Airport Information
- Facts about XCH
- Facts about SSC
- Map of Nearest Airports to XCH
- List of Nearest Airports to XCH
- Map of Furthest Airports from XCH
- List of Furthest Airports from XCH
- Map of Nearest Airports to SSC
- List of Nearest Airports to SSC
- Map of Furthest Airports from SSC
- List of Furthest Airports from SSC
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Christmas Island Airport (XCH), Christmas Island, Australia and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,765 miles (or 17,325 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 Christmas Island Airport and Shaw 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 Christmas Island Airport and Shaw 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: | XCH / YPXM |
Airport Name: | Christmas Island Airport |
Location: | Christmas Island, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 10°27'2"S by 105°41'25"E |
Operator/Owner: | Toll Remote Logistics |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 916 feet (279 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from XCH |
More Information: | XCH Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SSC / KSSC |
Airport Name: | Shaw Air Force Base |
Location: | Sumter, South Carolina, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°58'23"N by 80°28'22"W |
View all routes: | Routes from SSC |
More Information: | SSC Maps & Info |
Facts about Christmas Island Airport (XCH):
- Christmas Island Airport handled 27,286 passengers last year.
- The furthest airport from Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport (BAQ), which is nearly antipodal to Christmas Island Airport (meaning Christmas Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport), and is located 12,393 miles (19,944 kilometers) away in Barranquilla, Colombia.
- Christmas Island Airport is an airport located on Christmas Island, a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean.
- The closest airport to Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Cibeureum Airfield (TSY), which is located 276 miles (445 kilometers) NE of XCH.
- The airport's location at the top of a hill, with a 2% mid-runway gradient, makes it a challenging landing for pilots.
- Because of Christmas Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 916 feet, planes can take off or land at Christmas Island 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.
- Christmas Island Airport (XCH) currently has only 1 runway.
- Traffic to and from the airport varies greatly.
Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):
- The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
- On March 23, 1953, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated at Shaw.
- The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- The 363d TFW received its first F-16 on 26 March 1982.
- Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
- Jurisdiction of Shaw was again transferred to Tactical Air Command on 23 March 1946.
- After the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military branch in September 1947, Shaw Army Airfield was renamed Shaw Air Force Base, on 13 January 1948 and the 20th Fighter-Bomber Wing was activated on 15 August 1947 with the implementation of the Hobson Plan.