Nonstop flight route between Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States and Yambol (Jambol), Bulgaria:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Patrick Air Force Base (COF), Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States and Bezmer Air Base (JAM), Yambol (Jambol), Bulgaria would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,703 miles (or 9,179 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 Patrick Air Force Base and Bezmer Air Base, 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 Patrick Air Force Base and Bezmer Air Base. 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 Patrick Air Force Base (COF):

• During investigation by a board of inquiry regarding the entire Flight 19 incident, attention was given to the loss of the NAS Banana River-based PBM.
• US Navy Boeing E-6 Mercury aircraft, part of Operation Looking Glass, were sometimes seen at Patrick AFB during the 2010-11 time frame and were often mistaken by onlookers for the previously retired VC-137 Presidential aircraft, which looks similar.
• The closest airport to Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Merritt Island Airport (COI), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NNW of COF.
• The furthest airport from Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,550 miles (18,587 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The Air Force Technical Applications Center is a tenant command headquartered at Patrick AFB.
• In addition to being known as "Patrick Air Force Base", another name for COF is "Patrick AFB".
• Three months after World War II, on December 5, 1945, NAS Banana River had an ancillary role in the disappearance of Flight 19, a formation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, which had departed NAS Fort Lauderdale, Florida on a routine over-water training mission.

Facts about Bezmer Air Base (JAM):

• In 1955 the Bezmer Air Base hosted the 22 Fighter Air Regiment, later transformed into 22 Fighter-Bomber Air Regiment, and eventually into 22 Attack Air Base of the Bulgarian Air Force, serving as a base for Su-25 ground attack aircraft, as well as Su-22М-4 and Su-22UM-3K reconnaissance planes.
• The Bezmer Air Base is among the joint US-Bulgarian military bases established according to the 2006 Defense Cooperation Agreement between the United States and Bulgaria.
• Because of Bezmer Air Base's relatively low elevation of 509 feet, planes can take off or land at Bezmer Air Base 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 closest airport to Bezmer Air Base (JAM) is Stara Zagora Airport (SZR), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) W of JAM.
• Bezmer Air Base (JAM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The strategic location and particularly favorable weather conditions of the area was appreciated already during World War I, when the Imperial German Air Service built in Yambol a base for zeppelins used for reconnaissance and bombing missions to Romania, Russia, Sudan and Malta.
• The furthest airport from Bezmer Air Base (JAM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,287 miles (18,164 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Bezmer Air Base", another name for JAM is "LBIA".