Nonstop flight route between Fangatau, French Polynesia and Palmdale, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fangatau Airport (FGU), Fangatau, French Polynesia and Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD), Palmdale, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,794 miles (or 6,105 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 Fangatau Airport and Palmdale Regional 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 Fangatau Airport and Palmdale Regional 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 Fangatau Airport (FGU):

• In addition to being known as "Fangatau Airport", another name for FGU is "Aérodrome de Fangatau".
• Fangatau Airport (FGU) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Fangatau Airport (FGU) is Raroia Airport (RRR), which is located 107 miles (172 kilometers) W of FGU.
• Because of Fangatau Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Fangatau 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.
• The furthest airport from Fangatau Airport (FGU) is Massawa International Airport (MSW), which is nearly antipodal to Fangatau Airport (meaning Fangatau Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Massawa International Airport), and is located 12,417 miles (19,984 kilometers) away in Massawa, Eritrea.

Facts about Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD):

• Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) has 3 runways.
• PMD and Plant 42 are separate facilities that share a common runway at the site.
• The closest airport to Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is General Wm. J. Fox Airfield (WJF), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) NW of PMD.
• The furthest airport from Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a primary commercial service facility based on enplanements in 2008.Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 10,392 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 82% more than the 5,712 in 2007.
• After several airlines were unable to sustain operations at Palmdale, the terminal was remodeled and reopened in May 2007.
• The origins of Palmdale Regional Airport go to the early 1930s, when a small airstrip was built in the desert.
• Palmdale Army Airfield was declared a surplus facility in 1946 and was purchased by Los Angeles County for use as a municipal airport.
• LAWA has used Plant 42's facilities in past years when at one point in the early 1990s several airlines used the Palmdale Regional Airport terminal sited on Plant 42.
• On September 3, 2008 the San Francisco service was increased from two 50-seat regional jets to four 30-seat turboprop flights per day.