Nonstop flight route between Montpellier, France and Palmdale, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL), Montpellier, France and Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD), Palmdale, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,920 miles (or 9,527 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 Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport and Palmdale 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 Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport and Palmdale 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 Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL):

• Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL) has 2 runways.
• Because of Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at Montpellier–Méditerranée 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 "Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport", another name for MPL is "Aéroport de Montpellier–Méditerranée".
• The furthest airport from Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (meaning Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,410 miles (19,972 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Montpellier–Méditerranée Airport (MPL) is Nîmes-Alès-Camargue-Cévennes Airport (FNI), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) ENE of MPL.

Facts about Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD):

• Both the Air Force and its aircraft contractors needed a location away from major population centers - due to sonic booms, other noises and security concerns - but close enough to the major centers of aircraft design and production, while having excellent flying weather the year around.
• On February 1, 1991, USAir Flight 1493, a Boeing 737 landing on Runway 24L at LAX, collided upon touchdown with a SkyWest Airlines Fairchild Metroliner, Flight 5569 departing to Palmdale Regional Airport, that had been holding in position on the same runway.
• From 1970 to 1983 the Los Angeles Department of Airports, now called Los Angeles World Airports, acquired about 17,750 acres of land east and south of United States Air Force Plant 42 in unincorporated Los Angeles County to be developed into the future "Palmdale Intercontinental Airport," an alternative to LAX.
• The Blackbird Airpark Museum is an extension of the AFFTC Museum at Edwards AFB, while the Heritage Airpark is operated by the City of Palmdale.
• The Federal Aviation Administration operates its Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center at its site on Plant 42 by Avenue P and 25th Street East.
• During the 1990s, airlines operated out of the Palmdale Regional Airport, which consisted of the terminal and parking lot on leased land.
• The closest airport to Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is General Wm. J. Fox Airfield (WJF), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) NW of PMD.
• Palmdale Regional Airport is an airport in Palmdale, California.
• Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.