Nonstop flight route between Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MEL to DCA:
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- About this route
- MEL Airport Information
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- Facts about MEL
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- Map of Nearest Airports to MEL
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- Map of Furthest Airports from MEL
- List of Furthest Airports from MEL
- Map of Nearest Airports to DCA
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- Map of Furthest Airports from DCA
- List of Furthest Airports from DCA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Melbourne Airport (MEL), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,183 miles (or 16,388 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 Melbourne Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Melbourne Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MEL / YMML |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°40'23"S by 144°50'35"E |
Area Served: | Melbourne |
Operator/Owner: | Australia Pacific Airports Corporation Limited |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 434 feet (132 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from MEL |
More Information: | MEL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | DCA / KDCA |
Airport Name: | Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport |
Location: | Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°51'7"N by 77°2'16"W |
Area Served: | Washington Metropolitan Area |
Operator/Owner: | Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 15 feet (5 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from DCA |
More Information: | DCA Maps & Info |
Facts about Melbourne Airport (MEL):
- Terminal 1 hosts domestic services for Qantas Group airlines, Qantas, Jetstar and QantasLink and is located to the northern end of the building.
- In addition to being known as "Melbourne Airport", another name for MEL is "Tullamarine Airport".
- Melbourne Airport (MEL) has 2 runways.
- On 1 July 1970, Melbourne Airport was opened to international operations by Prime Minister John Gorton, ending Essendon's near 2-decade run as Melbourne International Airport.
- The closest airport to Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Essendon Airport (MEB), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SE of MEL.
- The furthest airport from Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Melbourne Airport (meaning Melbourne Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,187 miles (19,613 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
- Although described as a satellite terminal, the terminal building is connected by an above-ground corridor to Terminal 2.
- Melbourne Airport handled 2,998,000 passengers last year.
- Because of Melbourne Airport's relatively low elevation of 434 feet, planes can take off or land at Melbourne 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.
- Since privatisation, further improvements to infrastructure have begun at the airport, including expansion of runways, car parks and terminals.
Facts about Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA):
- The furthest airport from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,682 miles (18,800 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Originally the airport had no perimeter rule.
- Because of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Ronald Reagan Washington National 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.
- Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) has 3 runways.
- The closest airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Bolling Air Force Base (BOF), which is located only 1 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of DCA.
- Hoover Field, near the present site of the Pentagon, was the first major terminal to be developed in the Capital area, opening its doors in 1926.
- On February 6, 1998 President Bill Clinton signed legislation changing the airport's name from Washington National Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, to honor the former president on his 87th birthday.
- After the attacks, the airport was closed for several weeks, and security was tightened when it reopened.
- With the addition of more flights and limited space in the aging main terminal, the airport began an extensive renovation and expansion in the 1990s.