Nonstop flight route between Birmingham, Alabama, United States and Bakersfield, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM), Birmingham, Alabama, United States and Meadows Field (BFL), Bakersfield, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,836 miles (or 2,955 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 Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport and Meadows Field, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM):

• During the 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion, pilots and crews from the Alabama Air National Guard's 117th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing at Birmingham were selected to train Cuban exile fliers in Nicaragua to fly the Douglas B-26 Invader in the close air support role.
• The closest airport to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) is St. Clair County Airport (PLR), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) E of BHM.
• The 1974 terminal was built in the International style of architecture popular for American commercial and institutional buildings from the 1950s through the late 1970s.
• Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) has 2 runways.
• Continued growth in passenger traffic by 1962 resulted in the construction of a second passenger terminal and a new air traffic control tower, built west of the original 1931 terminal.
• Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport averages 301 aircraft operations a day, including 136 flights to 43 airports in 40 cities.
• An aircraft modification facility on the southwest side of the airport, built during World War II, is now operated by Pemco Aeroplex and owned by Nader Banilohi, with much of its recent work in support of the U.S.
• Terminal A referred to the former 1962 terminal, which was still in use as office space until it was closed in 2011.
• Because of Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport's relatively low elevation of 650 feet, planes can take off or land at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth 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.
• The furthest airport from Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,183 miles (17,998 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In the early 1990s Runway 18/36 was extended to 7,100 feet, allowing use by airline jets.

Facts about Meadows Field (BFL):

• 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.
• The closest airport to Meadows Field (BFL) is Shafter Airport (MIT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) WNW of BFL.
• Service was expensive compared to nearby airports, and normally ran during inconvenient times.
• Meadows Field (BFL) has 2 runways.
• United Airlines served Meadows Field from 1946 until 1979–80 and again for three years starting around 1984.
• In December 1944 the 481st NFOTG was inactivated as part of an AAF reorganization.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Meadows Field", another name for BFL is "Kern County Airport No. 1".
• Although the International Terminal is currently closed, when the terminal was open there was no airport transportation between it and the Domestic Terminal.
• After the war Meadows Field would return to its role as a commercial airport.