Nonstop flight route between Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea and Santa Ana, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,788 miles (or 10,924 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 Lae Nadzab Airport and MCAS El Toro, 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 Lae Nadzab Airport and MCAS El Toro. 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 Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):

• Lae Nadzab Airport is a regional airport located at Nadzab 42 kilometres outside of Lae, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea along the Highlands Highway.
• The first parachute jump for the 503rd Parachute Regiment was during the Allied paratrooper assault on 5 September 1943.
• After Lae was liberated, the United States Army built Nadzab airport and developed it into a massive airbase complex.
• The furthest airport from Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
• In about 1910 the Gabmatsung/Gabmazung Lutheran mission station was established at Nadzab.
• Lae airfield continued to be used by Air Niugini and other third-level airlines until 1987.
• Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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.
• Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.

Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• Before the site could be developed for civilian use, the Department of the Navy was required to perform environmental remediation to clean up contaminated soil on the site.
• Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• Already the largest Marine air station on the West Coast, in 1944, funds were approved to double its size and operations.
• The Department of the Navy hired the General Services Administration and Los Angeles-based Colliers International to assist in the sale of MCAS El Toro.
• The closing of MCAS El Toro ignited a political firestorm over the eventual fate of the facility.
• Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
• The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The land area originally taken by the air station is planned to be converted into a large recreational center, the Orange County Great Park.