Nonstop flight route between Bordeaux / Mérignac, France and Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD), Bordeaux / Mérignac, France and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN), Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,323 miles (or 8,566 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 Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield, 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 Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport and Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield. 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 Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD):

• During the early years of the Cold War, Bordeaux-Mérignac was a front-line NATO facility for the United States Air Forces in Europe.
• Because of Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Bordeaux-Mérignac 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.
• During World War II the German Luftwaffe took control of the base and used it as a centre for maritime reconnaissance.
• Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) has 2 runways.
• Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport is the international airport of Bordeaux, the ninth largest city in France.
• The furthest airport from Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (meaning Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,215 miles (19,658 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport", another name for BOD is "Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac".
• The closest airport to Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) is La Teste-de-Buch Airport (XAC), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) SW of BOD.
• Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport handled 457,435 passengers last year.
• Bordeaux Mérignac's origins begin in 1917, when a air field was established there.

Facts about Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN):

• In addition to being known as "Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield", another name for HMN is "Holloman AFB".
• There are numerous reasons the German Air Force trains at Holloman.
• The furthest airport from Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,323 miles (18,222 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Holloman Air Force Base Alamogordo Army Airfield (HMN) is Alamogordo–White Sands Regional Airport (ALM), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) E of HMN.
• The Tactical Fighter Wing arrived in July 1963 "making Holloman a TAC operating base" and on 8 April 1966, the 4758th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron arrived from Biggs AFB Texas.
• In September 2004, Luftwaffe chief of staff, Klaus-Peter Stieglitz announced a reduction in its training program of roughly 20%.
• With the September 1947 formation of the USAF, in late 1947 the Holloman range and the White Sands Proving Ground merged to become the New Mexico Joint Guided Missile Test Range,:248 and the renamed Holloman Air Force Base supported WSMR launch complex firing of Tiny Tim, Rascal, V-2 rocket, Ryan XQ-2 Drone, Falcon, MGM-13 Mace, MGM-1 Matador, and AGM-45 Shrike.
• In March 2013, it was announced that German Air Force units at Fort Bliss will transfer to Holloman later that same year.