Nonstop flight route between Columbus, Mississippi, United States and Santa Ana, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Columbus Air Force Base (CBM), Columbus, Mississippi, United States and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,679 miles (or 2,701 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 Columbus Air Force Base and MCAS El Toro, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Columbus Air Force Base (CBM):

• With the end of World War II, Columbus AAF was first placed on "reduced activity status", and was inactivated on 15 August 1946.
• The furthest airport from Columbus Air Force Base (CBM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,088 miles (17,844 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The Columbus flying school received its first aircraft, nine Beech AT-10s and twenty-one AT-8s in early 1942.
• The first KC-135 Stratotanker, piloted by the wing commander, landed on the new runway on 7 January 1959.
• The base began as a training facility for fighters and bombers.
• In addition to being known as "Columbus Air Force Base", another name for CBM is "Columbus AFB".
• The closest airport to Columbus Air Force Base (CBM) is Columbus-Lowndes County Airport (UBS), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSE of CBM.
• Columbus was initially assigned to the AAF Southeast Training Center with the Army Air Force Pilot School activated.
• In preparation for this transfer, Air Training Command had activated the 3650th Pilot Training Wing at Columbus on 15 February.

Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The site is currently used as a filming location, including the test track for the United States version of BBC's Top Gear franchise.
• Already the largest Marine air station on the West Coast, in 1944, funds were approved to double its size and operations.
• Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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 Department of the Navy hired the General Services Administration and Los Angeles-based Colliers International to assist in the sale of MCAS El Toro.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
• The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Those against the airport proposal were largely residents of the cities in the immediate vicinity of El Toro, such as Irvine, Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Dana Point, and Mission Viejo, where residents were alarmed at the idea of the aircraft noise.