Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991):
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from MER to LED:
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- About this route
- MER Airport Information
- LED Airport Information
- Facts about MER
- Facts about LED
- Map of Nearest Airports to MER
- List of Nearest Airports to MER
- Map of Furthest Airports from MER
- List of Furthest Airports from MER
- Map of Nearest Airports to LED
- List of Nearest Airports to LED
- Map of Furthest Airports from LED
- List of Furthest Airports from LED
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Pulkovo Airport (LED), Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,519 miles (or 8,882 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 Castle Airport and Pulkovo 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 Castle Airport and Pulkovo Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
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: | LED / ULLI |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) |
GPS Coordinates: | 59°48'1"N by 30°15'44"E |
Area Served: | Saint Petersburg, Russia |
Operator/Owner: | Saint Petersburg City Administration |
Airport Type: | International |
Elevation: | 79 feet (24 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from LED |
More Information: | LED Maps & Info |
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- 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.
- EPA investigations have been completed at multiple areas of contamination including landfills, discharge areas, chemical disposal areas, fire training areas, fuel spill areas, and polychlorinated biphenyl spill areas.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- Since the mid-1940s, aircraft maintenance, fuel management, and fire training activities on the base have generated wastes that consist primarily of waste fuels, oils, solvents, and cleaners.
- Castle Airport covers an area of 1,360 acres which contains one runway with an 11,802 x 150 ft asphalt and concrete pavement.
- 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 closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
- The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
Facts about Pulkovo Airport (LED):
- Originally it was named Shosseynaya Airport, by the name of a nearby railroad station.
- The closest airport to Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Rzhevka Airport (RVH), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NE of LED.
- For a more comprehensive list, see Aviation Safety Network Entry for LED.
- Pulkovo Airport handled 12,854,366 passengers last year.
- The furthest airport from Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,868 miles (17,491 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- In addition to being known as "Pulkovo Airport", another name for LED is "Аэропо́рт Пу́лково".
- In February 1948, after the damage was completely repaired, the airport resumed scheduled passenger flights.
- In the near term, Pulkovo strategically focuses on its master plan until 2025 that calls for massive modernization of the entire airport infrastructure.
- Pulkovo Airport (LED) has 2 runways.
- Because of Pulkovo Airport's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Pulkovo 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.