Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Horn Island, Queensland, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MER to HID:
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- About this route
- MER Airport Information
- HID Airport Information
- Facts about MER
- Facts about HID
- Map of Nearest Airports to MER
- List of Nearest Airports to MER
- Map of Furthest Airports from MER
- List of Furthest Airports from MER
- Map of Nearest Airports to HID
- List of Nearest Airports to HID
- Map of Furthest Airports from HID
- List of Furthest Airports from HID
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Horn Island Airport (HID), Horn Island, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,050 miles (or 11,347 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 Castle Airport and Horn Island 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 Castle Airport and Horn Island Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MER / KMER |
Airport Name: | Castle Airport |
Location: | Atwater, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°22'50"N by 120°34'5"W |
Operator/Owner: | Merced County Department of Commerce, Aviation, and Economic Development |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 191 feet (58 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MER |
More Information: | MER Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | HID / YHID |
Airport Name: | Horn Island Airport |
Location: | Horn Island, Queensland, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 10°35'11"S by 142°17'23"E |
Operator/Owner: | Torres Shire Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 43 feet (13 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from HID |
More Information: | HID Maps & Info |
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- It serves one school, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics, which specializes in training foreign pilots, from the People's Republic of China.
- The EPA currently has this base listed on their database due to the bulk wastes such as solvents, oils, fuels, and sludges which were disposed in pits at landfills around the base until 1977.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
- With its central location in the San Joaquin Valley, on the route of the proposed California High-Speed Rail system, and with a large, underdeveloped site, Castle Airport has been submitted as a possible location for the central maintenance facility for the system.
- The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
- Because of Castle Airport's relatively low elevation of 191 feet, planes can take off or land at Castle 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.
- It was estimated that the cost to relocate the 129 RQW to Castle, to include associated military construction costs, could be recouped in seven years.
Facts about Horn Island Airport (HID):
- The furthest airport from Horn Island Airport (HID) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,497 miles (18,503 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
- The closest airport to Horn Island Airport (HID) is Kubin Airport (KUG), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) N of HID.
- Because of Horn Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 43 feet, planes can take off or land at Horn 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.
- Horn Island Airport (HID) has 2 runways.