Nonstop flight route between Mojave, California, United States and Istres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV), Mojave, California, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,935 miles (or 9,551 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 Mojave Air and Space Port and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Mojave Air and Space Port and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. 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 Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV):

• The Mojave Airport was first opened in 1935 as a small, rural airfield serving the local gold and silver mining industry.
• The closest airport to Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV) is Tehachapi Municipal Airport (TSP), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) WNW of MHV.
• Flight testing activities have been centered at Mojave since the early 1970s, due to the lack of populated areas surrounding the airport.
• Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,411 miles (18,364 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
• Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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.
• Sometime after World War II, until May 1958 Base Aérienne 125 was host to the Royal Air Force Liaison Party, that serviced transient British and Commonwealth military aircraft staging to and from the United Kingdom.
• The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
• The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.