Nonstop flight route between Dover, Delaware, United States and Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Dover Air Force Base (DOV), Dover, Delaware, United States and NAS Key West (NQX), Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,069 miles (or 1,720 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 Dover Air Force Base and NAS Key West, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Dover Air Force Base (DOV):

• On 1 September 1946 as a result of the drawdown of United States forces after World War II, Dover Army Airfield, was placed on temporary inactive status.
• Dover AFB is also the home for the largest military mortuary in the Department of Defense, and has been used for processing military personnel killed in both war and peacetime.
• The furthest airport from Dover Air Force Base (DOV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,750 miles (18,909 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Dover Air Force Base (DOV) is Millville Municipal Airport (MIV), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) NE of DOV.
• Two sections of the 436th Aerial Port Squadron warehouse collapsed on February 18, 2003, as a result of a record snow storm.
• In 1992, with the disestablishment of Military Air Command, Dover AFB was transferred to the newly established Air Mobility Command and the 436 MAW and 512 MAW were redesignated as the 436th Airlift Wing and the 512th Airlift Wing, respectively.
• Once the airport came under military control an immediate construction program began to turn the civil airport into a military airfield.
• In addition to being known as "Dover Air Force Base", another name for DOV is "Dover AFB".
• Some of the more memorable flights during the post-war period included the airdrop and test firing of a Minuteman I intercontinental ballistic missile and the delivery of a 40-ton superconducting magnet to Moscow during the Cold War, for which the crew received the Mackay Trophy.

Facts about NAS Key West (NQX):

• Because of NAS Key West's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS Key West 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 NAS Key West (NQX) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,575 miles (18,629 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• The closest airport to NAS Key West (NQX) is Key West International Airport (EYW), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WSW of NQX.
• The nation's southernmost Naval Base proved to be an ideal year-round training facility with rapid access to the open sea lanes and ideal flying conditions for Naval Aviation.
• By 1964, the USAF added an AN/FPS-6A height-finder radar at NAS Key West, which was modified to an AN/FPS-90 set when a second radar was added.
• NAS Key West (NQX) has 3 runways.
• After World War II ended, NAS Key West was retained as a training facility.
• Naval Air Base Key West pilots flew in search of German submarines resting on the surface to recharge batteries.
• In addition to being known as "NAS Key West", other names for NQX include "Naval Air Station Key West" and "NQX[1]".
• On 5 October 2001, Naval Air Station Key West was temporarily downgraded and redesignated as Naval Air Facility Key West, but on 1 April 2003, the air facility was upgraded and restored back to full air station status as Naval Air Station Key West.
• The air station is also host to several tenant commands, including Fighter Squadron Composite 111, Strike Fighter Squadron 106 Detachment Key West, the U.S.