Nonstop flight route between Guápiles, Costa Rica and Santa Ana, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Guápiles Airport (GPL), Guápiles, Costa Rica and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,690 miles (or 4,329 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 Guápiles Airport and MCAS El Toro, 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 Guápiles Airport and MCAS El Toro. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Guápiles Airport (GPL):

• Guápiles Airport (GPL) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Guápiles Airport (GPL) is Tobías Bolaños International Airport (SYQ), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) SW of GPL.
• The furthest airport from Guápiles Airport (GPL) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is nearly antipodal to Guápiles Airport (meaning Guápiles Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport), and is located 12,294 miles (19,785 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Because of Guápiles Airport's relatively low elevation of 883 feet, planes can take off or land at Guápiles 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 MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• In 1950, El Toro was selected as a permanent Master Jet Station for the Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific.
• Over the years, the VOCs had seeped into the groundwater, resulting in a plume of contaminated groundwater extending for three miles to the west of the station.
• Marine Corps Air Station El Toro was a United States Marine Corps Air Station located near Irvine, California.
• The land originally surrounding the base was mostly at agricultural use when it first opened, but it the late 1980s and early 1990s, residential development started to begin in the area.
• In May 1942, Lieutenant Colonel William Fox was directed to select the sites for all of the Marine Corps' West Coast air stations.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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.
• The closing of MCAS El Toro ignited a political firestorm over the eventual fate of the facility.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.