Nonstop flight route between La Rioja, Argentina and Edwards, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (IRJ), La Rioja, Argentina and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,550 miles (or 8,931 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 Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport and Edwards Air Force Base, 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 Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport and Edwards Air Force Base. 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 Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (IRJ):

• The airport was named after the Argentine aviation pioneer Vicente Almandos Almonacid.
• It has a 940 m² passenger terminal, 85,000 m² of runways, 33,800m² of taxiways, a 1,730 m² hangar, and a parking place for 70 cars.
• In addition to being known as "Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport", another name for IRJ is "Aeropuerto de La Rioja - Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid".
• Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport is the main airport in La Rioja Province, Argentina serving the city of La Rioja.
• The closest airport to Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (IRJ) is Coronel Felipe Varela International Airport (CTC), which is located 83 miles (134 kilometers) NE of IRJ.
• Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (IRJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (IRJ) is Changsha Huanghua International Airport (CSX), which is nearly antipodal to Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport (meaning Capitán Vicente Almandos Almonacid Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Changsha Huanghua International Airport), and is located 12,355 miles (19,883 kilometers) away in Changsha, Hunan, China.

Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• The closest airport to Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) NW of EDW.
• The furthest airport from Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,414 miles (18,369 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• In the spring of 1942, however, the immense volume of flight test already being conducted at Wright Field, in Ohio, was one of the factors driving a search for a new site where a "Top Secret" airplane could undergo tests.
• A water stop on the Southern Pacific Railroad since 1876, the site was largely unsettled until the early 20th century.
• Notable occurrences at Edwards include Chuck Yeager's flight that broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1, test flights of the North American X-15, the first landings of the Space Shuttle, and the 1986 around-the-world flight of the Rutan Voyager.
• Four months later on 10 February 1948, Muroc AAF was re-designated Muroc Air Force Base with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military service.