Nonstop flight route between Saga, Kyūshū, Japan and Santa Ana, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Saga Airport (HSG), Saga, Kyūshū, Japan and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,050 miles (or 9,736 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 Saga Airport and MCAS El Toro, 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 Saga Airport and MCAS El Toro. 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 Saga Airport (HSG):

• In 2004, the airport's hours were extended to allow service between midnight and 4 a.m., and ANA began overnight cargo service between Saga and Tokyo, initially using passenger aircraft but switching to Boeing 767 freighter aircraft in 2006.
• In addition to being known as "Saga Airport", other names for HSG include "佐賀空港" and "Saga-kūkō".
• The closest airport to Saga Airport (HSG) is Nagasaki Airport (NGS), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) SW of HSG.
• Saga Airport (HSG) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Saga Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Saga 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 Saga Airport (HSG) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Saga Airport (meaning Saga Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,275 miles (19,755 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Saga was a candidate destination to receive an additional pair of Haneda Airport slots in November 2013, but its bid was rejected by the government due to its existing four-daily service and its proximity to Fukuoka Airport.

Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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 land originally surrounding the base was mostly at agricultural use when it first opened, but it the late 1980s and early 1990s, residential development started to begin in the area.
• The base headquarters was established on November 4, 1942 and the first landing occurred in late November when a Major Micheal Carmichael, flying from Camp Kearny, was forced to make an emergency landing among the construction equipment.
• The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
• The battle between pro-airport and anti-airport groups dominated Orange County politics for much of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The Department of the Navy hired the General Services Administration and Los Angeles-based Colliers International to assist in the sale of MCAS El Toro.