Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR), Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,246 miles (or 6,833 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear, 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear. 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):

• 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 (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• It was estimated that the cost to relocate the 129 RQW to Castle, to include associated military construction costs, could be recouped in seven years.
• 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 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 Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR):

• In addition to being known as "Svalbard Airport, Longyear", another name for LYR is "Svalbard lufthavn, Longyear".
• In 2011, the airport had 126,350 passengers.Scandinavian Airlines operates daily flights to Tromsø and Oslo in mainland Norway.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) is Honningsvåg Airport, Valan (HVG), which is located 534 miles (859 kilometers) SSE of LYR.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear handled 126,350 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Svalbard Airport, Longyear (LYR) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,170 miles (16,367 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.
• While the Catalina was suitable for postal flights, it was not suitable for a permanent solution for transporting passengers and freight, mainly due to its small size.
• The runway is 2,483 metres long and aligned 10/28, equipped with instrument landing system, but there are no taxiways.
• The Svalbard Treaty specifies that no military installations are permitted on the archipelago.
• On 14 August 1987, Braathens SAFE re-entered the market, flying in parallel with SAS to Tromsø and Oslo.
• Svalbard Airport, Longyear is the main airport serving Svalbard in Norway.
• Because of Svalbard Airport, Longyear's relatively low elevation of 94 feet, planes can take off or land at Svalbard Airport, Longyear 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.