Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Merced, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to MCE:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- MCE Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about MCE
- Map of Nearest Airports to FFD
- List of Nearest Airports to FFD
- Map of Furthest Airports from FFD
- List of Furthest Airports from FFD
- Map of Nearest Airports to MCE
- List of Nearest Airports to MCE
- Map of Furthest Airports from MCE
- List of Furthest Airports from MCE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,266 miles (or 8,475 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 RAF Fairford and Merced Regional 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 RAF Fairford and Merced Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FFD / EGVA |
Airport Name: | RAF Fairford |
Location: | Fairford, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°40'55"N by 1°47'24"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from FFD |
More Information: | FFD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MCE / KMCE |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Merced, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°17'4"N by 120°30'50"W |
Area Served: | Merced, California |
Operator/Owner: | City of Merced |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 155 feet (47 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MCE |
More Information: | MCE Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
- On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
- In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
- KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
- RAF Lyneham's position as the primary tactical transport base for the RAF was emphasised in February 1971 when Nos.
- On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
- The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
- Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
Facts about Merced Regional Airport (MCE):
- The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
- The airport was formerly served by Air Pacific, American Eagle, Golden Gate Airlines, United Airlines, United Express and US Airways Express.
- Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,314 miles (18,209 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".
- United's DC-3s were replaced by Convair 340s and Douglas DC-6s, and eventually by Boeing 737-200 jetliners in 1968-69.
- Because of Merced Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 155 feet, planes can take off or land at Merced 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.