Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Gyumri, Armenia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Shirak International Airport (LWN), Gyumri, Armenia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,949 miles (or 11,184 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 Shirak International 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 Shirak International 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 Castle Airport (MER):

• Castle Airport is a public use airport located seven nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Merced, a city in Merced County, California, United States.
• 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.
• Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• 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.
• The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
• 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 Shirak International Airport (LWN):

• Shirak International Airport (LWN) currently has only 1 runway.
• Shirak International Airport is an international airport serving Gyumri and the province of Shirak, Armenia.
• The furthest airport from Shirak International Airport (LWN) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,214 miles (18,047 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• The closest airport to Shirak International Airport (LWN) is Kars Airport (KSY), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) WSW of LWN.
• At the start of 2006, Armenia felt the importance of having a second international airport, when adverse weather conditions meant that many flights had to be diverted from Yerevan’s Zvartnots International Airport into Gyumri’s Shirak Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Shirak International Airport", another name for LWN is "Շիրակ Օդանավակայան".
• Because of Shirak International Airport's high elevation of 5,000 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at LWN. Combined with a high temperature, this could make LWN a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.