Nonstop flight route between Christmas Island, Australia and Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from XCH to YAW:
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- About this route
- XCH Airport Information
- YAW Airport Information
- Facts about XCH
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- Map of Nearest Airports to XCH
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- Map of Furthest Airports from XCH
- List of Furthest Airports from XCH
- Map of Nearest Airports to YAW
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- List of Furthest Airports from YAW
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Christmas Island Airport (XCH), Christmas Island, Australia and Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,989 miles (or 16,075 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 Shearwater Heliport, 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 Shearwater Heliport. 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: | YAW / CYAW |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°38'13"N by 63°30'7"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of Canada |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 144 feet (44 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from YAW |
More Information: | YAW Maps & Info |
Facts about Christmas Island Airport (XCH):
- Traffic to and from the airport varies greatly.
- 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.
- The closest airport to Christmas Island Airport (XCH) is Cibeureum Airfield (TSY), which is located 276 miles (445 kilometers) NE of XCH.
- Christmas Island Airport (XCH) currently has only 1 runway.
- Christmas Island Airport handled 27,286 passengers last year.
- Although located on Australian territory, the airport is classified as a Category 4 international airport for all arrivals, including those from Australia.
- 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.
Facts about Shearwater Heliport (YAW):
- These changes allowed for heliport operations including instrument approaches and were accompanied with the construction of other non-airfield facilities in support of the Maritime Helicopter Project.
- The furthest airport from Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,763 miles (18,931 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
- The air show moved to Yarmouth Airport in 2009 but returned to Shearwater in 2010, the first time since 2003 that an air show was held at the historic airfield.
- The February 1, 1968 unification of the three service branches into the Canadian Forces saw HMCS Shearwater change its name to Canadian Forces Base Shearwater.
- Because of Shearwater Heliport's relatively low elevation of 144 feet, planes can take off or land at Shearwater 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.
- The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
- By the 1980s this air show came to be named the "Shearwater International Air Show" and was a popular event for military aviation enthusiasts in Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States as the location of CFB Shearwater, coupled with the popularity of the Halifax area among military aircrew, resulted in heavy international participation from the RCAF, as well as the USAF, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, Royal Air Force and numerous other NATO air forces in Europe.
- In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".