Nonstop flight route between Merville / Calonne, France and Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merville - Calonne Airport (HZB), Merville / Calonne, France and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,801 miles (or 6,117 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 Merville - Calonne Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Merville - Calonne Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Merville - Calonne Airport (HZB):

• Originally built by Germans as a Luftwaffe airfield as part of the defensed of the Pas de Calais area.
• The closest airport to Merville - Calonne Airport (HZB) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located only 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of HZB.
• The furthest airport from Merville - Calonne Airport (HZB) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,965 miles (19,255 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Merville - Calonne Airport's relatively low elevation of 61 feet, planes can take off or land at Merville - Calonne 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 "Merville - Calonne Airport", other names for HZB include "Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) B-53" and "Aéroport de Merville - Calonne".
• Merville - Calonne Airport (HZB) has 2 runways.

Facts about Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA):

• Until 1999, Runways 1/19 and 4/22 were designated 18/36 and 3/21.
• Because of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Ronald Reagan Washington National 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.
• After the attacks, the airport was closed for several weeks, and security was tightened when it reopened.
• In 1984 Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole appointed a commission to study transferring National and Dulles Airports from the Federal Aviation Administration to a local entity, which could use airport revenues to finance improvements.
• The closest airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Bolling Air Force Base (BOF), which is located only 1 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of DCA.
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) has 3 runways.
• Other than 40 slot exemptions, flights into and out of DCA are not allowed to exceed 1,250 statute miles in any direction nonstop, in an effort to send air traffic to the larger but more distant Washington Dulles International Airport.
• The furthest airport from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,682 miles (18,800 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Terminal A opened in 1941 and was expanded in 1955 to accommodate more passengers and airlines.
• The airport opened June 16, 1941.