Nonstop flight route between Buka Island, Papua New Guinea and Fairbanks, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BUA to EIL:
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- About this route
- BUA Airport Information
- EIL Airport Information
- Facts about BUA
- Facts about EIL
- Map of Nearest Airports to BUA
- List of Nearest Airports to BUA
- Map of Furthest Airports from BUA
- List of Furthest Airports from BUA
- Map of Nearest Airports to EIL
- List of Nearest Airports to EIL
- Map of Furthest Airports from EIL
- List of Furthest Airports from EIL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea and Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,667 miles (or 9,120 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 Buka Island Airport and Eielson 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 Buka Island Airport and Eielson 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: | BUA / AYBK |
Airport Name: | Buka Island Airport |
Location: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 5°25'19"S by 154°40'21"E |
Area Served: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
Operator/Owner: | Government |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 11 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BUA |
More Information: | BUA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | EIL / PAEI |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Fairbanks, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 64°39'56"N by 147°6'5"W |
View all routes: | Routes from EIL |
More Information: | EIL Maps & Info |
Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):
- It is located at the southern end of the island, near Buka Passage behind the town of Buka, and pre-war Chinatown.
- Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka 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 furthest airport from Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
- Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
- In January 1944, the Allies drove the Japanese out of Buka, and the airfield was used for operations against the Japanese over New Guinea.
- The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
- Buka Airport is an airport serving Buka Island in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea.
Facts about Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):
- The host unit at Eielson is the 354th Fighter Wing assigned to the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force.
- The furthest airport from Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,295 miles (16,568 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- Today the 1st Brigade 25th Infantry Division and the 4th Brigade 25th Infantry Division can be found training there.
- Eielson AFB was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field.
- The 6th SW remained at Eielson AFB until 1992.
- The closest airport to Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) NW of EIL.
- In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
- Taken off deployment status in 2007 as a result of BRAC 2005, today the primary mission of the base is to support Red Flag-Alaska, a series of Pacific Air Forces commander-directed field training exercises for U.S.
- Headquarters USAF General Order 2, dated 13 January 1948, redesignated Mile 26 as Eielson AFB.