Nonstop flight route between Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, United States and Edwards, California, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from CMI to EDW:
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- About this route
- CMI Airport Information
- EDW Airport Information
- Facts about CMI
- Facts about EDW
- Map of Nearest Airports to CMI
- List of Nearest Airports to CMI
- Map of Furthest Airports from CMI
- List of Furthest Airports from CMI
- Map of Nearest Airports to EDW
- List of Nearest Airports to EDW
- Map of Furthest Airports from EDW
- List of Furthest Airports from EDW
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI), Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, United States and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,654 miles (or 2,661 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 University of Illinois Willard Airport and Edwards Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | CMI / KCMI |
Airport Name: | University of Illinois Willard Airport |
Location: | Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 40°2'21"N by 88°16'41"W |
Area Served: | Champaign-Urbana, Illinois |
Operator/Owner: | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 754 feet (230 meters) |
# of Runways: | 4 |
View all routes: | Routes from CMI |
More Information: | CMI Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | EDW / KEDW |
Airport Name: | Edwards Air Force Base |
Location: | Edwards, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°54'20"N by 117°53'0"W |
Operator/Owner: | United States Air Force |
View all routes: | Routes from EDW |
More Information: | EDW Maps & Info |
Facts about University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI):
- The airport was dedicated on 26 October 1945.
- The closest airport to University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI) is Decatur Airport (DEC), which is located 34 miles (55 kilometers) WSW of CMI.
- The airport is served by buses from the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, which connect with intercity buses and with Amtrak.
- The furthest airport from University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,084 miles (17,838 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of University of Illinois Willard Airport's relatively low elevation of 754 feet, planes can take off or land at University of Illinois Willard 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.
- University of Illinois Willard Airport (CMI) has 4 runways.
Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):
- Notable occurrences at Edwards include Chuck Yeager's flight that broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1, test flights of the North American X-15, the first landings of the Space Shuttle, and the 1986 around-the-world flight of the Rutan Voyager.
- The closest airport to Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) NW of EDW.
- Four months later on 10 February 1948, Muroc AAF was re-designated Muroc Air Force Base with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military service.
- The furthest airport from Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,414 miles (18,369 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- Aircraft testing continued at this desert "Army Air Base", then on 8 November 1943, the base title was changed to "Muroc Army Air Field, Muroc".
- In the spring of 1942, however, the immense volume of flight test already being conducted at Wright Field, in Ohio, was one of the factors driving a search for a new site where a "Top Secret" airplane could undergo tests.