Nonstop flight route between Merced, California, United States and Eastleigh (near Southampton), England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States and Southampton Airport (SOU), Eastleigh (near Southampton), England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,315 miles (or 8,554 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 Merced Regional Airport and Southampton 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 Merced Regional Airport and Southampton 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 Merced Regional Airport (MCE):

• Merced Regional Airport covers 766 acres at an elevation of 155 feet above mean sea level.
• 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.
• United's DC-3s were replaced by Convair 340s and Douglas DC-6s, and eventually by Boeing 737-200 jetliners in 1968-69.
• 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.
• The airport was formerly served by Air Pacific, American Eagle, Golden Gate Airlines, United Airlines, United Express and US Airways Express.
• Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".
• The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
• Between 1957 and 2007, Merced Regional Airport hosted the annual Merced West Coast Antique Fly-In.
• 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.

Facts about Southampton Airport (SOU):

• Southampton Airport (SOU) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Southampton Airport's relatively low elevation of 44 feet, planes can take off or land at Southampton 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 Southampton Airport (SOU) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,918 miles (19,179 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• In 1932 Southampton Corporation purchased the site and it became "Southampton Municipal Airport".
• On 5 March 2006 five restored Spitfires took off from Southampton Airport to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the first test flight of the Spitfire.
• After that war, the site became a transit camp for refugees, mainly Russian, who were anxious to sail to America from the port of Southampton.
• The closest airport to Southampton Airport (SOU) is Lasham Airfield (QLA), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) NE of SOU.
• Southampton Airport handled 1,722,758 passengers last year.