Nonstop flight route between Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom and Palmdale, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Lyneham (LYE), Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom and Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD), Palmdale, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,342 miles (or 8,598 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 RAF Lyneham and Palmdale 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 RAF Lyneham and Palmdale 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 RAF Lyneham (LYE):

• It was announced in July 2011 by the then-Secretary of State for Defence, Dr Liam Fox, that Lyneham would become the new site of the Defence Technical Training Change Programme centre.
• RAF Lyneham (LYE) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lyneham (LYE) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,913 miles (19,172 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The decision to close RAF Lyneham was made in 2002, and it was scheduled for closure by 2012 with all functions and aircraft relocated to RAF Brize Norton.
• The airfield was built in 1939, necessitating the demolition of Lyneham Court manor house, the buildings of Cranley Farm and the village's tennis courts.
• From 1958 Lyneham became one of the 18 Stations designated as dispersal airfields for the RAF's nuclear deterrent V bomber Force.
• RAF Lyneham received the first of 25 brand-new Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules on 23 November 1999, to be operated by Nos.
• Royal Air Force Station Lyneham or more simply RAF Lyneham is a former Royal Air Force station located 6.3 miles north east of Chippenham, Wiltshire and 10.3 miles south west of Swindon, Wiltshire, England.
• 99 Squadron reformed on 17 November 1945, at RAF Lyneham equipped with the Avro York, it operated as part of the Berlin Airlift.
• The closest airport to RAF Lyneham (LYE) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) NE of LYE.
• Because of RAF Lyneham's relatively low elevation of 512 feet, planes can take off or land at RAF Lyneham 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.

Facts about Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD):

• In 1940, Palmdale Army Airfield was activated as a United States Army Air Corps airfield for use as an emergency landing strip and for B-25 Mitchell medium bomber support training during World War II.
• Palmdale Regional Airport has a small airline terminal and a hangar.
• Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) has 3 runways.
• From 1970 to 1983 the Los Angeles Department of Airports, now called Los Angeles World Airports, acquired about 17,750 acres of land east and south of United States Air Force Plant 42 in unincorporated Los Angeles County to be developed into the future "Palmdale Intercontinental Airport," an alternative to LAX.
• The closest airport to Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is General Wm. J. Fox Airfield (WJF), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) NW of PMD.
• The furthest airport from Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The Blackbird Airpark Museum is an extension of the AFFTC Museum at Edwards AFB, while the Heritage Airpark is operated by the City of Palmdale.
• After several airlines were unable to sustain operations at Palmdale, the terminal was remodeled and reopened in May 2007.