Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MER to HIR:
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- About this route
- MER Airport Information
- HIR Airport Information
- Facts about MER
- Facts about HIR
- 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 HIR
- List of Nearest Airports to HIR
- Map of Furthest Airports from HIR
- List of Furthest Airports from HIR
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR), Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,040 miles (or 9,720 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 Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field), 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 Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field). 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: | HIR / AGGH |
Airport Name: | Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) |
Location: | Honiara, Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 9°25'41"S by 160°3'16"E |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 28 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from HIR |
More Information: | HIR Maps & Info |
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- EPA investigations have been completed at multiple areas of contamination including landfills, discharge areas, chemical disposal areas, fire training areas, fuel spill areas, and polychlorinated biphenyl spill areas.
- 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.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- Castle Airport is a public use airport located seven nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Merced, a city in Merced County, California, United States.
- The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of 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.
- Castle Airport covers an area of 1,360 acres which contains one runway with an 11,802 x 150 ft asphalt and concrete pavement.
- The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
Facts about Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR):
- Because of Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field)'s relatively low elevation of 28 feet, planes can take off or land at Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) 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.
- Honiara International Airport, formerly known as Henderson Field, is an airport located on Guadalcanal Island in the Solomon Islands.
- The furthest airport from Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Cap Skirring Airport (CSK), which is nearly antipodal to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (meaning Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap Skirring Airport), and is located 12,138 miles (19,533 kilometers) away in Cap Skirring, Senegal.
- Control of the airstrip was the focus of months of fighting in the Guadalcanal campaign during World War II.
- Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field) (HIR) is Mbambanakira Airport (MBU), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) SSW of HIR.