Nonstop flight route between Clovis, New Mexico, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF (CVS), Clovis, New Mexico, United States and Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,749 miles (or 4,425 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 Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF and Merrill Field, 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 Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF and Merrill Field. 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 Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF (CVS):

• In addition to being known as "Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF", another name for CVS is "Cannon AFB".
• A second wing, the 37th Fighter-Bomber Wing, was planned for activation at Clovis to replace the 50th.
• The 312th was initially equipped with F-86H Sabres when it activated, however it began to receive the F-100D Super Sabre in December 1956.
• It was assumed that the F-100s would probably not be an effective fighter in air-to-air combat, since it lacked a powerful radar set and could not carry advanced air-to-air weapons.
• The furthest airport from Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF (CVS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,139 miles (17,926 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• A variety of special operations aircraft are stationed at Cannon, including the AC-130W Stinger II, AC-130H Spectre, MQ-1 Predator, MQ-9 Reaper, CV-22 Osprey and several versions of light and medium transport aviation aircraft.
• The closest airport to Cannon Air Force Base Clovis Air Force Base/AAF (CVS) is Clovis Municipal Airport (CVN), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) ENE of CVS.

Facts about Merrill Field (MRI):

• The airstrip is still in use today as the primary field for private wheel equipped aircraft in the warmer months and for ski equipped in the winter.
• Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill Field 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 furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
• Merrill Field, located on the east end of 5th Avenue in Anchorage, Alaska, was the only airport serving Anchorage until 1951 when the introduction of ever larger and faster commercial aircraft required that an airfield with longer and heavier runways be built.