Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and Merced, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gatwick Airport (LGW), London, England, United Kingdom and Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,341 miles (or 8,596 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 Gatwick Airport and Merced Regional 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 Gatwick Airport and Merced Regional 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 Gatwick Airport (LGW):

• The furthest airport from Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,901 miles (19,152 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Gatwick Airport's relatively low elevation of 203 feet, planes can take off or land at Gatwick 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 May 1950, Gatwick's first charter flight left the airport's original grass runway for Calvi on the Mediterranean island of Corsica.
• BEA Helicopters made Gatwick their administrative and engineering base on 1 January 1964.
• Pope John Paul II arrived at the airport on 28 May 1982 on an Alitalia Boeing 727-200 Advanced, beginning the first papal visit to the United Kingdom.
• Gatwick Airport handled 35,444,206 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NNE of LGW.
• The name "Gatwick" was first recorded as "Gatwik" in 1241 on the site of today's airport, on the northern edge of the North Terminal's aircraft taxiing area.
• Gatwick Airport (LGW) has 2 runways.
• On 6 July 1935, the aerodrome closed temporarily for renovations, which included the construction of the "Beehive", the world's first circular terminal building.

Facts about Merced Regional Airport (MCE):

• On March 15, 1932 the Merced City Council accepted the title to the site of an airport as a gift from the Twenty-Thirty Club and the Crocker-Huffman Company.
• Between 1957 and 2007, Merced Regional Airport hosted the annual Merced West Coast Antique Fly-In.
• Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
• During the 1950s the airport was used to service United States Armed Forces aircraft, and a land acquisition in February 1955 allowed runway 12/30 to be extended.
• In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".
• The airport had 3,724 passenger boardings in 2012, an increase of 17% from the previous calendar year.
• The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
• Merced Regional Airport is a city owned public airport two miles southwest of Merced, in Merced County, California.
• The furthest airport from Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,314 miles (18,209 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Because of Merced Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 155 feet, planes can take off or land at Merced Regional 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.