Nonstop flight route between Edwards, California, United States and Zoersel / Oostmalle, Belgium:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States and Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield (OBL), Zoersel / Oostmalle, Belgium would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,544 miles (or 8,922 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 Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield, 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 Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield. 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 North Base is located at the north-west corner of Rogers Lake and is the site of the Air Force's most secret test programs at Edwards.
• In December 1949, Muroc was renamed Edwards Air Force Base in honor of Captain Glen Edwards, who was killed a year earlier in the crash of the Northrop YB-49 Flying Wing.
• 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.
• Conscious that March Field was located in an area of increasing growth, and with the need for bombing and gunnery ranges for his units, base and 1st Wing commander Lieutenant Colonel Henry H.
• With the arrival of the Bell Aircraft P-59 Airacomet jet fighter, the Mojave Desert station was chosen as a secluded site for testing this super-secret airplane.
• 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.
• The base has played a significant role in the development of virtually every aircraft to enter the Air Force inventory since World War II.

Facts about Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield (OBL):

• Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield (OBL) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield (OBL) is Antwerp International Airport (ANR), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) WSW of OBL.
• The furthest airport from Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield (OBL) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,919 miles (19,181 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield's relatively low elevation of 53 feet, planes can take off or land at Zoersel-Oostmalle Airfield 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.