Nonstop flight route between San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina and Atwater, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from AFA to MER:
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- About this route
- AFA Airport Information
- MER Airport Information
- Facts about AFA
- Facts about MER
- Map of Nearest Airports to AFA
- List of Nearest Airports to AFA
- Map of Furthest Airports from AFA
- List of Furthest Airports from AFA
- Map of Nearest Airports to MER
- List of Nearest Airports to MER
- Map of Furthest Airports from MER
- List of Furthest Airports from MER
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between San Rafael Airport (AFA), San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina and Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,994 miles (or 9,647 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 San Rafael Airport and Castle 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 San Rafael Airport and Castle Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AFA / SAMR |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°35'17"S by 68°24'12"W |
Area Served: | San Rafael, Mendoza Province, Argentina |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 2470 feet (753 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AFA |
More Information: | AFA Maps & Info |
Arrival 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 |
Facts about San Rafael Airport (AFA):
- In addition to being known as "San Rafael Airport", another name for AFA is "Aeropuerto San Rafael "Santiago Germano"".
- The closest airport to San Rafael Airport (AFA) is Comodoro D. Ricardo Salomón Airport (LGS), which is located 91 miles (147 kilometers) SW of AFA.
- The furthest airport from San Rafael Airport (AFA) is Luoyang Beijiao Airport (LYA), which is nearly antipodal to San Rafael Airport (meaning San Rafael Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Luoyang Beijiao Airport), and is located 12,391 miles (19,941 kilometers) away in Luoyang, Henan, China.
- San Rafael Airport (AFA) currently has only 1 runway.
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- In 2004, recommendations were made to relocate the 129th Rescue Wing of the California Air National Guard and its associated HC-130, MC-130 and HH-60 aircraft from Moffett Federal Airfield to the former Castle Air Force Base, now Castle Airport.
- It serves one school, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics, which specializes in training foreign pilots, from the People's Republic of China.
- The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
- 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.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.