Nonstop flight route between Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Pretoria, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shearwater Heliport (YAW), Shearwater, Nova Scotia, Canada and Wonderboom Airport (PRY), Pretoria, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,523 miles (or 12,106 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 Shearwater Heliport and Wonderboom 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 Shearwater Heliport and Wonderboom 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 Shearwater Heliport (YAW):

• 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.
• 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.
• As part of the heliport conversion project, the old runway 16/34 was permanently closed and placed outside of a new fence for the Shearwater Heliport, as shown in the Canada Flight Supplement effective 31 July 2008.
• Canadian Forces Base Shearwater, commonly referred to as CFB Shearwater, was a Canadian Forces Base located in Shearwater, Nova Scotia on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour in the Halifax Regional Municipality.
• By 2002 only runway 10/28 remained open.
• In addition to being known as "Shearwater Heliport", other names for YAW include "Halifax/Shearwater Heliport", "12 Wing Shearwater" and "CFB Shearwater".
• 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.
• The Shearwater Heliport is the location of the headquarters of 12 Wing, whose sole purpose is to support and operate shipborne helicopters for the Royal Canadian Navy.
• The closest airport to Shearwater Heliport (YAW) is Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) N of YAW.
• Beginning in the 1970s, CFB Shearwater began hosting an Armed Forces Day every fall, typically on the weekend following Labour Day, and included an air show where the long and wide runways at Shearwater hosted some of the largest aircraft in the world, including the U.S.

Facts about Wonderboom Airport (PRY):

• Because of Wonderboom Airport's high elevation of 4,095 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at PRY. Combined with a high temperature, this could make PRY a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Wonderboom Airport (PRY) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is nearly antipodal to Wonderboom Airport (meaning Wonderboom Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Hana Airport), and is located 12,007 miles (19,323 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Wonderboom Airport (PRY) has 2 runways.
• In 1965, the airport was extensively extended, with a new terminal building and hangars being constructed as well as the runway being extended.
• The closest airport to Wonderboom Airport (PRY) is Grand Central Airport (GCJ), which is located 24 miles (38 kilometers) SSW of PRY.
• The airport will initially be able to cope with 450 departing and 400 incoming passengers per hour.