Nonstop flight route between Mataram (near Praya), Lombok, Indonesia and Atwater, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lombok International Airport (LOP), Mataram (near Praya), Lombok, Indonesia and Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,392 miles (or 13,506 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 Lombok International Airport and Castle 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 Lombok International Airport and Castle 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 Lombok International Airport (LOP):

• Lombok International Airport handled 167,692 passengers last year.
• The airport is not served by rail connections and there are none available on the island.
• The IATA code LOP only came into formal use in late November 2011.
• The airport site is at Tanak Awu, in Kabupaten Lombok Tengah, Lombok, Indonesia, south west of Mataram the provincial capital of Nusa Tenggara Barat and a few kilometers south west of the small regional city of Praya.
• Because of Lombok International Airport's relatively low elevation of 319 feet, planes can take off or land at Lombok International 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 "Lombok International Airport", another name for LOP is "Bandar Udara Internasional Lombok".
• The furthest airport from Lombok International Airport (LOP) is San Tomé Airport (SOM), which is nearly antipodal to Lombok International Airport (meaning Lombok International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from San Tomé Airport), and is located 12,405 miles (19,964 kilometers) away in San Tomé, Venezuela.
• The closest airport to Lombok International Airport (LOP) is Selaparang Airport (AMI), which is located only 18 miles (30 kilometers) NW of LOP.
• Lombok International Airport (LOP) currently has only 1 runway.
• The secretary of commission III NTB Council, Suharto reported in 2010 that the delays to completion of the Lombok International Airport were due to a lack of funding to the order of Rp 76 Billion.
• The first aircraft landing was a Garuda Indonesia Boeing 737-800NG marking the commencement of operations on Saturday, 1 October 2011.

Facts about Castle Airport (MER):

• The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
• Because of Castle Airport's relatively low elevation of 191 feet, planes can take off or land at Castle 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.
• The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• It was estimated that the cost to relocate the 129 RQW to Castle, to include associated military construction costs, could be recouped in seven years.
• The EPA currently has this base listed on their database due to the bulk wastes such as solvents, oils, fuels, and sludges which were disposed in pits at landfills around the base until 1977.
• Castle Air Museum is 500 yards away, displaying over 50 restored World War II, Korean War, and Cold War era aircraft.