Nonstop flight route between Durango, Colorado, United States and Santa Ana, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from DRO to NZJ:
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- About this route
- DRO Airport Information
- NZJ Airport Information
- Facts about DRO
- Facts about NZJ
- Map of Nearest Airports to DRO
- List of Nearest Airports to DRO
- Map of Furthest Airports from DRO
- List of Furthest Airports from DRO
- Map of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- List of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from NZJ
- List of Furthest Airports from NZJ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Durango–La Plata County Airport (DRO), Durango, Colorado, United States and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 611 miles (or 983 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 Durango–La Plata County Airport and MCAS El Toro, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | DRO / KDRO |
| Airport Name: | Durango–La Plata County Airport |
| Location: | Durango, Colorado, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°9'5"N by 107°45'14"W |
| Area Served: | Durango, Colorado |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 6685 feet (2,038 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from DRO |
| More Information: | DRO Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | NZJ / KNZJ |
| Airport Name: | MCAS El Toro |
| Location: | Santa Ana, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°40'33"N by 117°43'51"W |
| Operator/Owner: | United States Marine Corps |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 383 feet (117 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 5 |
| View all routes: | Routes from NZJ |
| More Information: | NZJ Maps & Info |
Facts about Durango–La Plata County Airport (DRO):
- Durango–La Plata County Airport (DRO) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Durango–La Plata County Airport (DRO) is Animas Air Park (AMK), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WNW of DRO.
- The airport covers 1,281 acres at an elevation of 6,685 feet.
- The furthest airport from Durango–La Plata County Airport (DRO) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,121 miles (17,897 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Most flights now are turboprops or regional jets, the exception being Frontier Airlines Airbus A319s nonstop to Denver.American Eagle, flying for American Airlines, has Embraer ERJ-140s and ERJ-145s nonstop to Dallas/Ft.
- Because of Durango–La Plata County Airport's high elevation of 6,685 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at DRO. Combined with a high temperature, this could make DRO a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):
- The base headquarters was established on November 4, 1942 and the first landing occurred in late November when a Major Micheal Carmichael, flying from Camp Kearny, was forced to make an emergency landing among the construction equipment.
- In 1993, MCAS El Toro was designated for closing by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission and all of its activities were to be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
- Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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.
- MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
- The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- Over the years, the VOCs had seeped into the groundwater, resulting in a plume of contaminated groundwater extending for three miles to the west of the station.
- In May 1942, Lieutenant Colonel William Fox was directed to select the sites for all of the Marine Corps' West Coast air stations.
- The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
- The battle between pro-airport and anti-airport groups dominated Orange County politics for much of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
