Nonstop flight route between Edwards, California, United States and Lourdes, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States and Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE), Lourdes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,774 miles (or 9,293 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 Edwards Air Force Base and Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées 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 Edwards Air Force Base and Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées 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 Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• 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.
• 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.
• On the afternoon of 7 December 1941, the 41st Bombardment Group and the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron moved to Muroc from Davis-Monthan Army Airfield, Arizona with a collection of B-18 Bolos, an A-29 Hudson and B-25 Mitchells.
• Aircraft testing continued at this desert "Army Air Base", then on 8 November 1943, the base title was changed to "Muroc Army Air Field, Muroc".
• 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.
• With the end of the war, Fourth Air Force relinquished command of Muroc Army Airfield on 16 October 1945 and jurisdiction was transferred to Air Technical Service Command, becoming Air Materiel Command in 1946.
• As a military airbase, civilian access is severely restricted, but is possible with prior coordination and good reason.

Facts about Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE):

• The furthest airport from Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (meaning Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,254 miles (19,721 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport is a small regional airport located 9 km south-southwest of Tarbes and near Lourdes, both communes of the Hautes-Pyrénées département in France.
• The closest airport to Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE) is Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) WNW of LDE.
• In addition to being known as "Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport", another name for LDE is "Aéroport de Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées".