Nonstop flight route between Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Valenciennes, France:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WOL to XVS:
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- About this route
- WOL Airport Information
- XVS Airport Information
- Facts about WOL
- Facts about XVS
- Map of Nearest Airports to WOL
- List of Nearest Airports to WOL
- Map of Furthest Airports from WOL
- List of Furthest Airports from WOL
- Map of Nearest Airports to XVS
- List of Nearest Airports to XVS
- Map of Furthest Airports from XVS
- List of Furthest Airports from XVS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL), Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia and Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,471 miles (or 16,851 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and Valenciennes-Denain 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 Illawarra Regional Airport and Valenciennes-Denain Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | WOL / YWOL |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°33'39"S by 150°47'18"E |
Operator/Owner: | Shellharbour City Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 31 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from WOL |
More Information: | WOL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | XVS / LFAV |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Valenciennes, France |
GPS Coordinates: | 50°19'32"N by 3°27'39"E |
Elevation: | 177 feet (54 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from XVS |
More Information: | XVS Maps & Info |
Facts about Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL):
- In addition to being known as "Illawarra Regional Airport", another name for WOL is "Wollongong Airport".
- Because of Illawarra Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 31 feet, planes can take off or land at Illawarra Regional 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 Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Horta International Airport (HOR), which is nearly antipodal to Illawarra Regional Airport (meaning Illawarra Regional Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Horta International Airport), and is located 12,162 miles (19,573 kilometers) away in Horta, Azores, Portugal.
- The airport is home to a growing Light Aeronautics Industry Cluster, the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society, Australian Aerial Patrol, and a range of tourism related operations.
- The closest airport to Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) is Camden Aerodrome (CDU), which is located 36 miles (59 kilometers) N of WOL.
- There is no control tower located at the airport and pilots must co-ordinate arrivals and departures using a Common Traffic Advisory Frequency, aided by an Aerodrome Frequency Response Unit, which notifies pilots that their transmissions have been received on the frequency and activates lighting systems as appropriate.
- Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) has 2 runways.
Facts about Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):
- Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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 wartime air base is still evident with the 5500' concrete NE/SW runway remaining, complete with patched bomb craters and expansion joints allowing grass to grow between the concrete pads.
- The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.
- It was seized by the Germans in late May 1940 during the early part of the Battle of France.
- Denain Airport began as a pre-World War II airport in France, most likely with a grass runway and several support buildings and a hangar.
- Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
- In French control after the war, the airport sat abandoned for several years.
- After being used for a brief time as a storage depot for excess aircraft after the war ended by Air Technical Service Command, the Americans turned the airfield back over to French authorities on 25 June 1945.
- It is known that Denain was used by the Royal Air Force, as it was assigned ALG "B-74".
- It appears that the Luftwaffe moved out of Denain in 1941 and the airfield was left unused.