Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Lyon, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN), Lyon, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,772 miles (or 9,289 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 Lyon–Bron 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 Lyon–Bron Airport. 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 Castle Airport (MER):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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 (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN):

• It was used as a military airfield beginning in 1943 by the German Luftwaffe, being used as a RADAR station by Nachtjagdraumführer 109 to detect Royal Air Force bombers flying over Occupied France at night to targets in Italy.
• The furthest airport from Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Lyon–Bron Airport (meaning Lyon–Bron Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,288 miles (19,775 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In 1975 commercial airline traffic was moved to the new Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport, and Bron Airport is now used for general aviation.
• Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Lyon–Bron Airport's relatively low elevation of 659 feet, planes can take off or land at Lyon–Bron 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.
• The closest airport to Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN) is Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport (LYS), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) E of LYN.
• In addition to being known as "Lyon–Bron Airport", another name for LYN is "Aéroport de Lyon-BronAdvanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-6".