Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Portland, Oregon, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MER to PDX:
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- About this route
- MER Airport Information
- PDX Airport Information
- Facts about MER
- Facts about PDX
- 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 PDX
- List of Nearest Airports to PDX
- Map of Furthest Airports from PDX
- List of Furthest Airports from PDX
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Portland International Airport (PDX), Portland, Oregon, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 577 miles (or 928 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 relatively short distance between Castle Airport and Portland International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
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: | PDX / KPDX |
Airport Name: | Portland International Airport |
Location: | Portland, Oregon, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 45°35'18"N by 122°35'50"W |
Area Served: | Portland metropolitan area |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 30 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from PDX |
More Information: | PDX Maps & Info |
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.
- Castle Airport covers an area of 1,360 acres which contains one runway with an 11,802 x 150 ft asphalt and concrete pavement.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
Facts about Portland International Airport (PDX):
- In 1948 the entire airport grounds were flooded during the Vanport Flood, forcing scheduled airline services to reroute to nearby Troutdale Airport.
- An expanded parking garage, new control tower, and canopy over the curbside were finished in the late 1990s.
- Swan Island Airport was officially named Portland Airport until the opening of the new airport.
- Portland International Airport handled 1,502,956 passengers last year.
- By 1935 it was becoming apparent to the Port of Portland that the Swan Island Airport was becoming obsolete.
- In 2012, PDX handled 14,390,784 passengers and had non-stop commercial air service to 17 of the 18 most populated US Metropolitan Statistical Areas.
- The furthest airport from Portland International Airport (PDX) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,903 miles (17,546 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Plans made in 1968 to add a third runway by means of filling in parts of the Columbia River were met with vocal public opposition and scrapped.
- Portland International Airport (PDX) has 3 runways.
- The closest airport to Portland International Airport (PDX) is Portland-Troutdale Airport (TTD), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ESE of PDX.
- The airport's international service was also featured on The Amazing Race 13 as the arrival airport after all three teams that were in the race arrived on Lufthansa from Frankfurt.
- Because of Portland International Airport's relatively low elevation of 30 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland International 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.