Nonstop flight route between Merced, California, United States and Del Rio, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States and Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF), Del Rio, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,261 miles (or 2,029 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 relatively short distance between Merced Regional Airport and Laughlin Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Merced Regional Airport (MCE):

• In 1946 United Airlines built offices and a terminal building and began one Douglas DC-3 flight each way a day.
• The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
• 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.
• 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.
• On March 6, 2009 the city council voted to change the name from Merced Municipal Airport to Merced Regional Airport.
• In 1941 construction delays at the Air Corps Basic Flying School site forced the Army to lease the original Merced Municipal Airport, resulting in the first aircraft assigned to the Air Corps Basic Flying School being stored at Merced Municipal Airport and giving the Basic Flying School its first usable axillary field.
• Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".
• On May 15, 2011 Great Lakes Airlines commenced daily service to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California, with a stop in Visalia, California.

Facts about Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF):

• Another 4080th pilot, Major Rudolf Anderson, Jr., perished when his U-2 was hit by shrapnel from a Soviet-made SA-2 on October 22, 1962 while overflying Cuba from McCoy AFB.
• The furthest airport from Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,241 miles (18,091 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Laughlin U-2s were among the first to provide photographic evidence of Soviet missile installations in Cuba in 1962 when 4080th U-2 pilot Major Steve Heyser flew his U-2C over Cuba after taking off from Edwards AFB, California.
• The median income for a household on the base was $38,625, and the median income for a family was $38,625.
• The closest airport to Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF) is Del Rio International Airport (DRT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) W of DLF.
• The residential area of the base is a census-designated place, with a population of 1,569 at the 2010 census.