Nonstop flight route between Desroches Island, Seychelles and Edwards, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Desroches Island Airport (DES), Desroches Island, Seychelles and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,348 miles (or 16,653 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 Desroches Island Airport and Edwards Air Force 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 Desroches Island Airport and Edwards Air Force 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 Desroches Island Airport (DES):

• In addition to being known as "Desroches Island Airport", another name for DES is "Desroches Island".
• The furthest airport from Desroches Island Airport (DES) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,058 miles (17,796 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• Desroches Island Airport (DES) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Desroches Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Desroches Island 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.
• The closest airport to Desroches Island Airport (DES) is Seychelles International Airport (SEZ), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of DES.

Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• 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.
• 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.
• Conscious that March Field was located in an area of increasing growth, and with the need for bombing and gunnery ranges for his units, base and 1st Wing commander Lieutenant Colonel Henry H.
• 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.
• 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.
• A major reason for the growth of Edwards AFB was the nearness of West Coast aircraft manufacturers.