Nonstop flight route between Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada and Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from YFS to AWK:
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- About this route
- YFS Airport Information
- AWK Airport Information
- Facts about YFS
- Facts about AWK
- Map of Nearest Airports to YFS
- List of Nearest Airports to YFS
- Map of Furthest Airports from YFS
- List of Furthest Airports from YFS
- Map of Nearest Airports to AWK
- List of Nearest Airports to AWK
- Map of Furthest Airports from AWK
- List of Furthest Airports from AWK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fort Simpson Airport (YFS), Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada and Wake Island Airfield (AWK), Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,468 miles (or 7,190 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 Fort Simpson Airport and Wake Island Airfield, 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 Fort Simpson Airport and Wake Island Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | YFS / CYFS |
Airport Name: | Fort Simpson Airport |
Location: | Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°45'37"N by 121°14'12"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of the Northwest Territories |
Elevation: | 556 feet (169 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from YFS |
More Information: | YFS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AWK / PWAK |
Airport Name: | Wake Island Airfield |
Location: | Wake Island, United States Minor Outlying Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 19°16'56"N by 166°38'12"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 23 feet (7 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AWK |
More Information: | AWK Maps & Info |
Facts about Fort Simpson Airport (YFS):
- Fort Simpson Airport (YFS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Fort Simpson Airport (YFS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 10,037 miles (16,152 kilometers) away in Port Alfred, South Africa.
- Because of Fort Simpson Airport's relatively low elevation of 556 feet, planes can take off or land at Fort Simpson 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 Fort Simpson Airport (YFS) is Wrigley Airport (YWY), which is located 122 miles (197 kilometers) NW of YFS.
Facts about Wake Island Airfield (AWK):
- The closest airport to Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is Quoin Hill Airfield (UIQ), which is located 169 miles (272 kilometers) SE of AWK.
- On 26 December 1940, implementing the Hepburn Board's recommendations, a pioneer party of 80 men and 2,000 short tons of equipment sailed for Wake Island from Oahu.
- Because of Wake Island Airfield's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at Wake Island Airfield 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.
- Wake Island Airfield (AWK) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Wake Island Airfield (AWK) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is located 11,652 miles (18,752 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
- From 1935 until 1940, when two typhoons swept Wake with resultant extensive damage to the now elaborately developed Pan American facilities, development and use of the base were steady but uneventful.