Nonstop flight route between Mildenhall, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom and Merced, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), Mildenhall, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom and Merced Regional Airport (MCE), Merced, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,302 miles (or 8,532 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 RAF Mildenhall and Merced Regional 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 RAF Mildenhall and Merced Regional 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 RAF Mildenhall (MHZ):

• The 501st Combat Support Wing was activated at RAF Mildenhall on 21 May 2005.
• The squadron was redesignated as the 727 AMS on 15 March 2001.
• The host unit at Mildenhall is the 100th Air Refueling Wing, which deploys aircraft for and manages the European Tanker Task Force, a rotational force which provides air refuelling to US and NATO aircraft in the European Theater.
• The 95th Reconnaissance Squadron conducts RC-135 Rivet Joint flight operations in the European and Mediterranean theatres of operations as tasked by National Command Authorities and European Command.
• In order to meet a perceived "continental threat", the British military developed the idea to site an RAF bomber base at Mildenhall in the late 1920s.
• The closest airport to RAF Mildenhall (MHZ) is RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) NE of MHZ.
• On 1 October 1993, the 6988th Electronic Security Squadron was designated the 488th Intelligence Squadron as part of the ongoing restructuring of Air Force Intelligence and the Air Force Intelligence Command as a field operating agency.
• The furthest airport from RAF Mildenhall (MHZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,829 miles (19,037 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Merced Regional Airport (MCE):

• Merced Regional Airport (MCE) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Merced Regional Airport", another name for MCE is "MacReady Field".
• The furthest airport from Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,314 miles (18,209 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In 1946 United Airlines built offices and a terminal building and began one Douglas DC-3 flight each way a day.
• The closest airport to Merced Regional Airport (MCE) is Castle Airport (MER), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) NNW of MCE.
• Because of Merced Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 155 feet, planes can take off or land at Merced Regional 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.
• On March 6, 2009 the city council voted to change the name from Merced Municipal Airport to Merced Regional Airport.