Nonstop flight route between Atwater, California, United States and Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma):

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States and Mandalay International Airport (MDL), Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma) would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,713 miles (or 12,413 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 Mandalay 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 Mandalay 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):

• The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
• Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
• 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.
• The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• 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.
• 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 Mandalay International Airport (MDL):

• Mandalay International Airport handled 500,000 passengers last year.
• Due to the reforms in Myanmar, the airport has begun to see increase in traffic especially daily flights to Bangkok and to China.
• Mandalay International Airport (MDL) currently has only 1 runway.
• Construction of the airport began in 1996, and the airport was officially opened in September 2000 at a cost of US$150 million.
• The furthest airport from Mandalay International Airport (MDL) is Capitán FAP Renán Elías Olivera International Airport (PIO), which is located 11,685 miles (18,805 kilometers) away in Pisco, Peru.
• Because of Mandalay International Airport's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Mandalay International 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.
• In addition to being known as "Mandalay International Airport", another name for MDL is "မန္တလေး အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာ လေဆိပ်".
• The closest airport to Mandalay International Airport (MDL) is Nyaung U International Airport (NYU), which is located 76 miles (123 kilometers) WSW of MDL.
• Opened on 17 September 2000, the terminal building can handle 1000 passenger arrivals and 1000 passenger departures per hour.