Nonstop flight route between Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe and Merced, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hwange National Park Airport (HWN), Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe and Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,092 miles (or 16,241 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 Hwange National Park Airport and Merced 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 Hwange National Park Airport and Merced 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 Hwange National Park Airport (HWN):

• The furthest airport from Hwange National Park Airport (HWN) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is nearly antipodal to Hwange National Park Airport (meaning Hwange National Park Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Hilo International Airport), and is located 12,282 miles (19,766 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• Hwange National Park Airport (HWN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Hwange National Park Airport (HWN) is Victoria Falls Airport (VFA), which is located 86 miles (138 kilometers) WNW of HWN.

Facts about Merced Regional Airport (MCE):

• The airport had 3,724 passenger boardings in 2012, an increase of 17% from the previous calendar year.
• The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
• The furthest airport from Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,314 miles (18,209 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Because of Merced Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 155 feet, planes can take off or land at Merced Regional 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 1941 construction delays at the Air Corps Basic Flying School site forced the Army to lease the original Merced Municipal Airport, resulting in the first aircraft assigned to the Air Corps Basic Flying School being stored at Merced Municipal Airport and giving the Basic Flying School its first usable axillary field.
• During the 1950s the airport was used to service United States Armed Forces aircraft, and a land acquisition in February 1955 allowed runway 12/30 to be extended.
• The Department of Transportation reselected Great Lakes Airlines to provide Essential Air Service at Merced Regional Airport for the two-year period from October 1, 2012, through September 30, 2014.
• On March 6, 2009 the city council voted to change the name from Merced Municipal Airport to Merced Regional Airport.
• Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".