Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Tucson, Arizona, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MER to DMA:
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- About this route
- MER Airport Information
- DMA Airport Information
- Facts about MER
- Facts about DMA
- Map of Nearest Airports to MER
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- List of Furthest Airports from MER
- Map of Nearest Airports to DMA
- List of Nearest Airports to DMA
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- List of Furthest Airports from DMA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), Tucson, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 657 miles (or 1,057 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 Castle Airport and Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MER / KMER |
Airport Name: | Castle Airport |
Location: | Atwater, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°22'50"N by 120°34'5"W |
Operator/Owner: | Merced County Department of Commerce, Aviation, and Economic Development |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 191 feet (58 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from MER |
More Information: | MER Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | DMA / KDMA |
Airport Name: | Davis–Monthan Air Force Base |
Location: | Tucson, Arizona, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°9'59"N by 110°52'59"W |
View all routes: | Routes from DMA |
More Information: | DMA Maps & Info |
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
- Castle Airport covers an area of 1,360 acres which contains one runway with an 11,802 x 150 ft asphalt and concrete pavement.
- With its central location in the San Joaquin Valley, on the route of the proposed California High-Speed Rail system, and with a large, underdeveloped site, Castle Airport has been submitted as a possible location for the central maintenance facility for the system.
- 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.
Facts about Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA):
- As the location of the Air Force Materiel Command's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, Davis–Monthan Air Force Base is the sole aircraft boneyard for excess military and government aircraft.
- On 15 June 1964, Davis-Monthan's 303d Bombardment Wing was inactivated as part of the retirement of the B-47 Stratojet from active service.
- The furthest airport from Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,508 miles (18,521 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The Cold War era was ushered in at Davis-Monthan in March 1946, in the form of the 40th and 444th Bombardment Groups, both equipped with B-29s.
- In 1919, the Tucson Chamber of Commerce aviation committee established the nation's first municipally owned airfield at the current site of the Tucson Rodeo Grounds.
- On 1 October 1976, the base was transferred to Tactical Air Command after 30 years under SAC.
- The closest airport to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Tucson International Airport (TUS), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SW of DMA.
- In May 1992, the 41st and 43d Electronic Combat Squadron, flying EC-130E Hercules Compass Call arrived.
- On 2 March 1949, the Lucky Lady II, a B-50A of the 43d Bombardment Wing, completed the first nonstop round-the-world flight, having covered 23,452 miles in 94 hours and 1 minute.