Nonstop flight route between Fresno, California, United States and St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH), Fresno, California, United States and MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,237 miles (or 8,429 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 Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) and MoD St Athan, 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 Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) and MoD St Athan. 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 Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH):

• Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old)'s relatively low elevation of 279 feet, planes can take off or land at Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) 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.
• The furthest airport from Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,334 miles (18,241 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH) is Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) ENE of FCH.
• For the 12-month period ending March 2, 2007 the airport had 25,000 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 68 per day.

Facts about MoD St Athan (DGX):

• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• The new academy was claimed to create up to 5000 jobs at St Athan with a £14 billion investment over 25 years with an estimated £57.4 million spent into the local economy.
• After the war, airmen of the Airframe and Engine trades continued to train at St Athan, but in 1955 this training dispersed to RAF Kirkham and RAF Weeton.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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.
• RAF St Athan was also home for the Royal Air Force Administrative Apprentice Training School.
• In March 2003 it was confirmed that a new hi-tech maintenance centre would be built, creating 3,300 jobs.
• The only squadrons to operate out of St Athan on a regular basis are the University of Wales Air Squadron, flying Grob Tutors and No 634 Volunteer Gliding Squadron using Vigilant T.1s.