Nonstop flight route between Bluefield, West Virginia, United States and Knob Noster, Missouri, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BLF to SZL:
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- About this route
- BLF Airport Information
- SZL Airport Information
- Facts about BLF
- Facts about SZL
- Map of Nearest Airports to BLF
- List of Nearest Airports to BLF
- Map of Furthest Airports from BLF
- List of Furthest Airports from BLF
- Map of Nearest Airports to SZL
- List of Nearest Airports to SZL
- Map of Furthest Airports from SZL
- List of Furthest Airports from SZL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Mercer County Airport (BLF), Bluefield, West Virginia, United States and Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 678 miles (or 1,092 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 Mercer County Airport and Whiteman Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | BLF / KBLF |
| Airport Name: | Mercer County Airport |
| Location: | Bluefield, West Virginia, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°17'44"N by 81°12'28"W |
| Area Served: | Bluefield / Princeton, West Virginia |
| Operator/Owner: | Mercer County Airport Authority |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 2857 feet (871 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from BLF |
| More Information: | BLF Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SZL / KSZL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Knob Noster, Missouri, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 38°43'49"N by 93°32'53"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from SZL |
| More Information: | SZL Maps & Info |
Facts about Mercer County Airport (BLF):
- The furthest airport from Mercer County Airport (BLF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,493 miles (18,496 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Mercer County Airport (BLF) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Mercer County Airport (BLF) is New River Valley Airport (PSK), which is located 31 miles (50 kilometers) ESE of BLF.
Facts about Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):
- In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
- The Air National Guard 131st Bomb Wing and the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing have a unique relationship at Whiteman AFB, in that members of the two units work side-by-side on a daily basis, although the majority of the 131st Bomb Wing visits Whiteman only one weekend per month for drill.
- The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- In May 1942, construction workers descended upon an area known to locals as the "Blue Flats" because of the color of the soil and began building a railroad spur for the new air base.
- The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
- In November 1942, the installation became Sedalia Army Air Field and was assigned to the I Troop Carrier Command of the Army Air Force.
- Whiteman initially employed the Minuteman I weapons system until the mid-1960s, when a force modernization program converted the Minuteman I to the Minuteman II.
