Nonstop flight route between Marysville, California, United States and Valence, France:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from BAB to VAF:
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- About this route
- BAB Airport Information
- VAF Airport Information
- Facts about BAB
- Facts about VAF
- Map of Nearest Airports to BAB
- List of Nearest Airports to BAB
- Map of Furthest Airports from BAB
- List of Furthest Airports from BAB
- Map of Nearest Airports to VAF
- List of Nearest Airports to VAF
- Map of Furthest Airports from VAF
- List of Furthest Airports from VAF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Beale Air Force Base (BAB), Marysville, California, United States and Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF), Valence, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,744 miles (or 9,243 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 Beale Air Force Base and Valence - Chabeuil 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 Beale Air Force Base and Valence - Chabeuil Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BAB / KBAB |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Marysville, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 39°8'9"N by 121°26'11"W |
View all routes: | Routes from BAB |
More Information: | BAB Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | VAF / LFLU |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Valence, France |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°54'56"N by 4°58'6"E |
Area Served: | Valence, Drôme, France |
Operator/Owner: | Department of Drôme |
Airport Type: | Public / Military |
Elevation: | 525 feet (160 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from VAF |
More Information: | VAF Maps & Info |
Facts about Beale Air Force Base (BAB):
- On 30 January 1959, the Air Force announced plans to conduct surveys in the vicinity of Beale to determine the feasibility for missile bases.
- In 1948, Camp Beale became Beale AFB, its mission being to train bombardier navigators in radar techniques.
- The closest airport to Beale Air Force Base (BAB) is Yuba County Airport (MYV), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of BAB.
- The furthest airport from Beale Air Force Base (BAB) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,251 miles (18,107 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The 456th BW was inactivated on 30 September 1975, and its equipment and personnel were redesignated as the 17th Bombardment Wing, Heavy when the senior unit was inactivated at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
- In 1940, the "Camp Beale" area consisted of grassland and rolling hills and the 19th century mining town of Spenceville.
- In addition to being known as "Beale Air Force Base", another name for BAB is "Beale AFB".
Facts about Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF):
- The furthest airport from Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (meaning Valence - Chabeuil Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,333 miles (19,848 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) has 3 runways.
- Because of Valence - Chabeuil Airport's relatively low elevation of 525 feet, planes can take off or land at Valence - Chabeuil 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.
- Today the airport is a modern, fully equipped facility with two additional parallel grass runways available for use.
- In addition to being known as "Valence - Chabeuil Airport", other names for VAF include "Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-23" and "Aéroport de Valence - Chabeuil".
- The closest airport to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Grenoble–Isère Airport (GNB), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of VAF.
- After the forceful occupation of Vichy France in November 1942 as a result of Case Anton Wehrmacht units moved into the Valence area and the airport came under the control of the Luftwaffe.