Nonstop flight route between Abilene, Texas, United States and Bordeaux / Mérignac, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Dyess Air Force Base (DYS), Abilene, Texas, United States and Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD), Bordeaux / Mérignac, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,083 miles (or 8,180 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 Dyess Air Force Base and Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport, 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 Dyess Air Force Base and Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport. 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 Dyess Air Force Base (DYS):

• In 1942, the United States Army Air Forces built Tye Army Air Field, as it was popularly known, on the site of what is now known as Dyess AFB.
• The base is named after Lt Col William Edwin Dyess, a native of Albany, Texas, who was captured by the Japanese on Bataan in April 1942.
• The closest airport to Dyess Air Force Base (DYS) is Abilene Regional Airport (ABI), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) E of DYS.
• In addition to being known as "Dyess Air Force Base", another name for DYS is "Dyess AFB".
• The base is located in the southwest corner of Abilene, TX and is about 200 miles west of Dallas.
• The furthest airport from Dyess Air Force Base (DYS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,080 miles (17,831 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• On 19 November 1959, the United States Army conducted groundbreaking ceremonies at Dyess AFB for the battalion headquarters of the 5th Missile Battalion, 517th Artillery of the U.S.
• The 77th and 69th groups were units that trained reconnaissance personnel who later served overseas.

Facts about Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD):

• Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) has 2 runways.
• During World War II the German Luftwaffe took control of the base and used it as a centre for maritime reconnaissance.
• The furthest airport from Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (meaning Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,215 miles (19,658 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport handled 457,435 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (BOD) is La Teste-de-Buch Airport (XAC), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) SW of BOD.
• In addition to being known as "Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport", another name for BOD is "Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac".
• Because of Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Bordeaux-Mérignac 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.
• In 1957, C-119G transports from Évreux AB, France moved the USAFE Mobile Headquarters from Wiesbaden AB, Ger.
• During the early years of the Cold War, Bordeaux-Mérignac was a front-line NATO facility for the United States Air Forces in Europe.