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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States and Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF), Valence, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,866 miles (or 9,440 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 Valence - Chabeuil 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 Valence - Chabeuil 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 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 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 P-59s were tested at Muroc from October 1942 through February 1944 without a single accident and, though the aircraft did not prove to be combat worthy, the successful conduct of its test program, combined with the success of the Lockheed XP-80 program which followed it in early 1944, sealed the future destiny of the remote high desert installation.
• Previously known as Muroc Air Force Base, Edwards AFB is named in honor of Captain Glen Edwards.
• The base is next to Rogers Dry Lake, an endorheic desert salt pan whose hard dry lake surface provides a natural extension to Edwards' runways.
• It is the home of the Air Force Test Center and is the Air Force Materiel Command center of excellence for conducting and supporting research and developmental flight test and evaluation of aerospace systems from concept to combat.
• With the X-1, flight testing at Muroc began to assume two distinct identities.
• 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.
• In July 1942, Muroc Army Airfield became a separate airfield from March Field and was placed under the jurisdiction of Fourth Air Force.

Facts about Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF):

• Used by the French Air Force base after the war, it was closed and today the airport is used for general aviation, with no commercial airline service.
• The Portez was a heavy twin-engined fighter.
• Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Grenoble–Isère Airport (GNB), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of VAF.
• The furthest airport from Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (meaning Valence - Chabeuil Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,333 miles (19,848 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Valence - Chabeuil Airport's relatively low elevation of 525 feet, planes can take off or land at Valence - Chabeuil 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 addition to being known as "Valence - Chabeuil Airport", other names for VAF include "Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-23" and "Aéroport de Valence - Chabeuil".