Nonstop flight route between Bakersfield, California, United States and Falkland Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Meadows Field (BFL), Bakersfield, California, United States and RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,050 miles (or 11,346 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 Meadows Field and RAF Mount Pleasant, 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 Meadows Field and RAF Mount Pleasant. 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 Meadows Field (BFL):

• The closest airport to Meadows Field (BFL) is Shafter Airport (MIT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) WNW of BFL.
• Passenger and baggage handling at Meadows Field is provided solely by DAL Global Services.
• Meadows Field (BFL) has 2 runways.
• Taxi stands are located outside the north entrance to the terminal, across the street.
• Because of Meadows Field's relatively low elevation of 510 feet, planes can take off or land at Meadows 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.
• Aviation has been linked to Kern County almost as long as the existence of the industry.
• Federal Aviation Administration records show 141,847 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 103,067 enplanements in 2009, and 111,699 in 2010.
• With the end of the war, the base was declared excess to requirements and returned to civil control.
• With the development of commercial air service Bakersfield needed a purpose-built commercial airport.
• Meadows Field covers 1,357 acres at an elevation of 510 feet above mean sea level.
• In late 1943 the United States Army Air Forces acquired usage rights to Meadows Field.
• Kern County Air Terminal has three open air gates, and is currently closed.
• In addition to being known as "Meadows Field", another name for BFL is "Kern County Airport No. 1".
• The furthest airport from Meadows Field (BFL) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,406 miles (18,356 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.

Facts about RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• 33 Engineer Regiment provides constant support and is part of the Joint Service Falkland Islands Detachment which consists of RAF and RLC EOD teams.
• On 2 March 2012, the Argentinian President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner called for Aerolineas Argentinas flights to Buenos Aires to replace LAN Airlines flights to Chile.
• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• Flights of Phantoms were rotated through the airfield until 1992 when they were replaced with Tornado F3s.
• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.