Nonstop flight route between Kōchi, Japan and Bakersfield, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kōchi Airport (KCZ), Kōchi, Japan and Meadows Field (BFL), Bakersfield, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,747 miles (or 9,249 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 Kōchi Airport and Meadows Field, 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 Kōchi Airport and Meadows Field. 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 Kōchi Airport (KCZ):

• Because of Kōchi Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Kōchi 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 "Kōchi Airport", another name for KCZ is "高知空港".
• Kōchi Airport (KCZ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Kōchi Airport was originally built in 1944 as Kōchi Airfield for the Imperial Japanese Navy and from 1945 to 1952 the airport was under command of US forces.
• The furthest airport from Kōchi Airport (KCZ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is nearly antipodal to Kōchi Airport (meaning Kōchi Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Rio Grande Regional Airport), and is located 12,083 miles (19,446 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• The 120 ha airport has a single runway handling small to medium size aircraft.
• On 13 March 2007, All Nippon Airways Flight 1603, a Bombardier Dash 8, bound from Osaka to Kōchi, landed safely at the Kochi Airport after the front wheel of the plane failed to deploy.
• The closest airport to Kōchi Airport (KCZ) is Takamatsu Airport (TAK), which is located 50 miles (81 kilometers) NNE of KCZ.

Facts about Meadows Field (BFL):

• Federal Aviation Administration records show 141,847 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 103,067 enplanements in 2009, and 111,699 in 2010.
• The furthest airport from Meadows Field (BFL) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,406 miles (18,356 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Meadows Field (BFL) is Shafter Airport (MIT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) WNW of BFL.
• Meadows Field (BFL) has 2 runways.
• Service was expensive compared to nearby airports, and normally ran during inconvenient times.
• Aviation has been linked to Kern County almost as long as the existence of the industry.
• Passenger and baggage handling at Meadows Field is provided solely by DAL Global Services.
• Kern County has planned several improvements to the airport over the next 20 years, all of which are based on future demand.
• In addition to being known as "Meadows Field", another name for BFL is "Kern County Airport No. 1".
• Because of Meadows Field's relatively low elevation of 510 feet, planes can take off or land at Meadows Field 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.
• Between May 1 and July 12, 1944, the 427th Night Fighter Squadron trained at Meadows Field.