Nonstop flight route between Watsonville, California, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WVI to LKZ:
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- About this route
- WVI Airport Information
- LKZ Airport Information
- Facts about WVI
- Facts about LKZ
- Map of Nearest Airports to WVI
- List of Nearest Airports to WVI
- Map of Furthest Airports from WVI
- List of Furthest Airports from WVI
- Map of Nearest Airports to LKZ
- List of Nearest Airports to LKZ
- Map of Furthest Airports from LKZ
- List of Furthest Airports from LKZ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Watsonville Municipal Airport (WVI), Watsonville, California, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,359 miles (or 8,625 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 Watsonville Municipal Airport and RAF Lakenheath, 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 Watsonville Municipal Airport and RAF Lakenheath. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | WVI / KWVI |
Airport Name: | Watsonville Municipal Airport |
Location: | Watsonville, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 36°56'8"N by 121°47'22"W |
Operator/Owner: | City of Watsonville |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 163 feet (50 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from WVI |
More Information: | WVI Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LKZ / EGUL |
Airport Name: | RAF Lakenheath |
Location: | Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 52°24'29"N by 0°33'24"E |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from LKZ |
More Information: | LKZ Maps & Info |
Facts about Watsonville Municipal Airport (WVI):
- Watsonville Municipal Airport is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Watsonville, a city in Santa Cruz County, California, USA.
- The furthest airport from Watsonville Municipal Airport (WVI) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,380 miles (18,315 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Watsonville Municipal Airport (WVI) is Hollister Municipal Airport (HLI), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) E of WVI.
- Because of Watsonville Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at Watsonville Municipal 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 Navy took over in July, 1943, purchased an additional 35 acres, built support buildings and the concrete ramp.
- Watsonville Municipal Airport (WVI) has 2 runways.
Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):
- The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
- The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- Lakenheath Airfield was used by RAF flying units on detachment late in 1941.
- The reason for the departure of the two bomber squadrons was Lakenheath's selection for upgrading to a Very Heavy Bomber airfield.
- In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948.
- Meanwhile on 30 April 1956, two Lockheed U-2s were airlifted to RAF Lakenheath to form CIA Detachment A.