Nonstop flight route between Inyokern, California, United States and Catania, Italy:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Inyokern Airport (IYK), Inyokern, California, United States and Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY), Catania, Italy would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,552 miles (or 10,544 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 Inyokern Airport and Naval Air Station Sigonella, 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 Inyokern Airport and Naval Air Station Sigonella. 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 Inyokern Airport (IYK):

• The closest airport to Inyokern Airport (IYK) is Trona Airport (TRH), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) ENE of IYK.
• Inyokern Airport (IYK) has 3 runways.
• The Inyokern Airport Dragstrip opened in 1954, and was the second oldest continuously operating dragstrip in the United States, behind Thornhill Dragstrip in Kenton, KY which opened in 1953.
• The furthest airport from Inyokern Airport (IYK) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,366 miles (18,291 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• In the wake of the drag strip's closing, the airport has been actively promoting its use for film shoots, with the Ridgecrest Regional Film Commission marketing it as "the region's #1 filming location".
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 11,149 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 11,081 enplanements in 2009, and 11,109 in 2010.

Facts about Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY):

• The closest airport to Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) ENE of NSY.
• By the end of August 1959, the NAF II airfield was available for daylight flights under visual flight rules.
• The furthest airport from Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,695 miles (18,821 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Naval Air Station Sigonella's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station Sigonella 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.
• When there was no room for expansion at Malta, the U.S.
• Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) has 2 runways.
• When NATO took military intervention to Libya in 2011, NAS Sigonella played an important role in US Operation Odyssey Dawn because of its short distance to the country.
• From 1987 to 2002, there was a base housing development Villaggio Costanzo which was located in the village of Santa Maria La Stella, in the comune of Aci Sant'Antonio, and approximately 60 minutes from NAS I.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station Sigonella", other names for NSY include "Base aerea di Sigonella" and "NAS Sigonella".