Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Pensacola, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Pensacola International Airport (PNS), Pensacola, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,494 miles (or 5,623 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 Pensacola 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 Merrill Field and Pensacola 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 Merrill Field (MRI):

• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
• 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.
• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• Merrill Field is home to the University of Alaska Anchorage's Aviation Technology Division, as well as two locally-owned flight schools, air taxi services, and fixed base operators.
• 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.
• 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 Pensacola International Airport (PNS):

• The closest airport to Pensacola International Airport (PNS) is NOLF Saufley Field (NUN), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) W of PNS.
• In 1978, after deregulation of the airline industry, several airlines tried Pensacola, including Continental and Delta.
• The airport director is Greg Donovan, who replaced Melinda Crawford in 2012.
• Runway 17 has an instrument landing system and approach lights, while the Runway 26 approach has a localizer approach.
• On May 8, 1978 National Airlines Flight 193 landed in Escambia Bay while approaching the east-west runway.
• On December 27, 1987 an Eastern Airlines DC-9-31 made a hard landing and split its fuselage open just aft of its wing root.
• Pensacola International Airport, formerly Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport, is a public use airport three nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Pensacola, in Escambia County, Florida, United States.
• Pensacola International Airport (PNS) has 2 runways.
• Because of Pensacola International Airport's relatively low elevation of 121 feet, planes can take off or land at Pensacola 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.
• The airport's two war-era diagonal runways were decommissioned in the 1960s.
• The furthest airport from Pensacola International Airport (PNS) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,148 miles (17,940 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.