Nonstop flight route between Big Lake, Alaska, United States and Sumter, South Carolina, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BGQ to SSC:
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- About this route
- BGQ Airport Information
- SSC Airport Information
- Facts about BGQ
- Facts about SSC
- Map of Nearest Airports to BGQ
- List of Nearest Airports to BGQ
- Map of Furthest Airports from BGQ
- List of Furthest Airports from BGQ
- Map of Nearest Airports to SSC
- List of Nearest Airports to SSC
- Map of Furthest Airports from SSC
- List of Furthest Airports from SSC
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Big Lake Airport (BGQ), Big Lake, Alaska, United States and Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), Sumter, South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,517 miles (or 5,660 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 Big Lake Airport and Shaw 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 Big Lake Airport and Shaw 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: | BGQ / PAGQ |
Airport Name: | Big Lake Airport |
Location: | Big Lake, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°32'9"N by 149°48'50"W |
Area Served: | Big Lake, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | State of Alaska DOT&PF - Central Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 158 feet (48 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BGQ |
More Information: | BGQ Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SSC / KSSC |
Airport Name: | Shaw Air Force Base |
Location: | Sumter, South Carolina, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°58'23"N by 80°28'22"W |
View all routes: | Routes from SSC |
More Information: | SSC Maps & Info |
Facts about Big Lake Airport (BGQ):
- Big Lake Airport (BGQ) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Big Lake Airport (BGQ) is Wasilla Airport (WWA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) ENE of BGQ.
- The furthest airport from Big Lake Airport (BGQ) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,522 miles (16,934 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- Because of Big Lake Airport's relatively low elevation of 158 feet, planes can take off or land at Big Lake 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.
Facts about Shaw Air Force Base (SSC):
- The furthest airport from Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,545 miles (18,580 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- For a brief time, Shaw Field also served as a prisoner-of-war camp.
- The squadrons flew the P-61 Black Widow in Europe with Ninth Air Force during World War II, and were reassigned back to the United States after the end of hostilities.
- The 432nd's mission at Shaw AFB was to assume the reconnaissance training mission that was handled previously by the 363d TRW.
- Shaw AFB is home base of the USAF 20th Fighter Wing, which flies F-16CJ Fighting Falcons.
- The closest airport to Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) is Sumter Airport (SUM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ENE of SSC.
- Flying activities at the field began on 22 October 1941 using Vultee BT-13 Valiants.
- By 1980, the advent of reconnaissance satellites made the need for tactical aircraft reconnaissance less and less necessary.
- Over the next four decades, the squadrons under the 363d TRW changed frequently.