Nonstop flight route between Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and Porterville, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH), Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV), Porterville, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,366 miles (or 8,636 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville 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 London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH):

• Between the wars, the airfield was used by a number of experimental units, working on instrument design, ground based anti-aircraft defences, and night flying.
• Meanwhile, the Officer and Aircrew Selection Centre moved to RAF Cranwell in 1992, marking the end of active RAF involvement.
• After the war, Biggin Hill was briefly used by the RAF's Transport Command, and then became a base for both regular and reserve fighter squadrons, flying Spitfires, Meteors and Hunters.
• In addition to being known as "London Biggin Hill Airport", another name for BQH is "Biggin Hill Airport".
• Three model aircraft clubs operate within a three mile radius of Biggin Hill Airport.
• Because of London Biggin Hill Airport's relatively low elevation of 599 feet, planes can take off or land at London Biggin Hill 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.
• In 2001, the London Borough of Bromley as freeholder of the airport succeeded in an action in the Court of Appeal.
• The furthest airport from London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,892 miles (19,139 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) has 2 runways.
• The current RAF Biggin Hill is a small enclave on the western boundary of the airport to the south of the passenger terminal, and contains the headquarters of 2427 Squadron of the Air Training Corps.
• The closest airport to London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SW of BQH.

Facts about Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV):

• The furthest airport from Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,368 miles (18,294 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Because of Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 442 feet, planes can take off or land at Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield 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.
• At the end of the war the airfield was determined to be excess by the military and turned over to the local government for civil use.
• The closest airport to Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) is Mefford Field (TLR), which is located only 17 miles (28 kilometers) WNW of PTV.
• Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) currently has only 1 runway.