Nonstop flight route between In Amenas, Algeria and Atwater, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between In Amenas Airport (IAM), In Amenas, Algeria and Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,884 miles (or 11,078 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 In Amenas Airport and Castle 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 In Amenas Airport and Castle 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 In Amenas Airport (IAM):

• In Amenas Airport (IAM) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "In Amenas Airport", other names for IAM include "In Amenas Airport (Zarzaitine)" and "Aéroport de in Amenas / Zarzaitine".
• The furthest airport from In Amenas Airport (IAM) is Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), which is located 11,878 miles (19,116 kilometers) away in Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga.
• In Amenas Airport handled 145,070 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to In Amenas Airport (IAM) is Ghadames Airport (LTD), which is located 145 miles (233 kilometers) N of IAM.

Facts about Castle Airport (MER):

• In 2004, recommendations were made to relocate the 129th Rescue Wing of the California Air National Guard and its associated HC-130, MC-130 and HH-60 aircraft from Moffett Federal Airfield to the former Castle Air Force Base, now Castle Airport.
• The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
• Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Because of Castle Airport's relatively low elevation of 191 feet, planes can take off or land at Castle 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.
• It serves one school, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics, which specializes in training foreign pilots, from the People's Republic of China.
• With its central location in the San Joaquin Valley, on the route of the proposed California High-Speed Rail system, and with a large, underdeveloped site, Castle Airport has been submitted as a possible location for the central maintenance facility for the system.