Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MRI to LAE:
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- About this route
- MRI Airport Information
- LAE Airport Information
- Facts about MRI
- Facts about LAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to MRI
- List of Nearest Airports to MRI
- Map of Furthest Airports from MRI
- List of Furthest Airports from MRI
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAE
- List of Nearest Airports to LAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAE
- List of Furthest Airports from LAE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,767 miles (or 9,282 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 Merrill Field and Lae Nadzab 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 Merrill Field and Lae Nadzab Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MRI / PAMR |
Airport Name: | Merrill Field |
Location: | Anchorage, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°12'48"N by 149°50'39"W |
Operator/Owner: | Municipality of Anchorage |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 137 feet (42 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from MRI |
More Information: | MRI Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAE / AYNZ |
Airport Name: | Lae Nadzab Airport |
Location: | Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 6°34'10"S by 146°43'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 239 feet (73 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAE |
More Information: | LAE Maps & Info |
Facts about Merrill Field (MRI):
- The offices of the Alaska Dispatch, parent company of the Anchorage Daily News, are located on Merrill Field.
- The furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
- This was the first official airport in Anchorage when it opened in 1930.
- Merrill Field, located on the east end of 5th Avenue in Anchorage, Alaska, was the only airport serving Anchorage until 1951 when the introduction of ever larger and faster commercial aircraft required that an airfield with longer and heavier runways be built.
- Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
- The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
- Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill Field 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 Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):
- In March 1942, the Japanese occupied Lae and Salamaua.
- The furthest airport from Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
- The closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.
- The airfield in Lae was operating at the same time as Nadzab but business was significantly lost to the new airport complex became fully operational in 1977.
- Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Between April 1943 and July 1943, the Allied Geographical Section of South West Pacific Area conducted reconnaissance after the Japanese invasion.
- Nadzab is located on the Erap River, 5 kilometres North of the Markham River.
- Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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.
- After Lae was liberated, the United States Army built Nadzab airport and developed it into a massive airbase complex.