Nonstop flight route between Dakar, Senegal and Bakersfield, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR), Dakar, Senegal and Meadows Field (BFL), Bakersfield, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,260 miles (or 10,074 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport and Meadows 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport and Meadows 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR):

• During World War II, Dakar Airport was a key link in the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command Natal-Dakar air route, which provided a transoceanic link between Brazil and French West Africa after 1942.
• The airport has often been used as a stopover on flights between North America and Southern Africa.
• In addition to being known as "Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport", another name for DKR is "Aéroport international Léopold-Sédar-Senghor".
• The closest airport to Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) is Kaolack Airport (KLC), which is located 105 miles (168 kilometers) ESE of DKR.
• In 2007, Patrick Smith, author of the Ask the Pilot column for Salon.com, called it the "World's Worst Airport", commenting that he found there "only squalor, an unnerving sense of confinement and to some extent danger".
• Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport handled 1,500,000 passengers last year.
• The airport is also home to the French Air Force's Dakar-Ouakam Air Base.
• The furthest airport from Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) is Kirakira Airport (IRA), which is nearly antipodal to Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (meaning Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kirakira Airport), and is located 12,138 miles (19,533 kilometers) away in Kirakira, Makira Island, Solomon Islands.
• Before the introduction of long-range jets in the mid-1970s, it used to be an important stopover point for the routes between Europe and South America, together with the Canary Islands.
• Because of Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport's relatively low elevation of 85 feet, planes can take off or land at Léopold Sédar Senghor International 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.
• Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) has 2 runways.

Facts about Meadows Field (BFL):

• The closest airport to Meadows Field (BFL) is Shafter Airport (MIT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) WNW of BFL.
• Because of Meadows Field's relatively low elevation of 510 feet, planes can take off or land at Meadows 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 airport is located at the intersection of Merle Haggard Drive and Airport Drive, in Oildale.
• Meadows Field (BFL) has 2 runways.
• Aviation has been linked to Kern County almost as long as the existence of the industry.
• The furthest airport from Meadows Field (BFL) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,406 miles (18,356 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• In late 1943 the United States Army Air Forces acquired usage rights to Meadows Field.
• Service was expensive compared to nearby airports, and normally ran during inconvenient times.
• In addition to being known as "Meadows Field", another name for BFL is "Kern County Airport No. 1".
• Kern County Air Terminal has three open air gates, and is currently closed.