Nonstop flight route between Patuxent River, Maryland, United States and Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from NHK to VPS:
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- About this route
- NHK Airport Information
- VPS Airport Information
- Facts about NHK
- Facts about VPS
- Map of Nearest Airports to NHK
- List of Nearest Airports to NHK
- Map of Furthest Airports from NHK
- List of Furthest Airports from NHK
- Map of Nearest Airports to VPS
- List of Nearest Airports to VPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from VPS
- List of Furthest Airports from VPS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK), Patuxent River, Maryland, United States and Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS), Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 788 miles (or 1,269 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 relatively short distance between Naval Air Station Patuxent River and Northwest Florida Regional Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | NHK / KNHK |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Patuxent River, Maryland, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°17'9"N by 76°24'42"W |
Operator/Owner: | United States Navy |
Airport Type: | Naval Air Station |
Elevation: | 39 feet (12 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from NHK |
More Information: | NHK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | VPS / KVPS |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 30°28'59"N by 86°31'31"W |
Area Served: | Fort Walton Beach, Destin |
Airport Type: | Public / Military |
Elevation: | 87 feet (27 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from VPS |
More Information: | VPS Maps & Info |
Facts about Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK):
- The closest airport to Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) is St. Mary's County Regional Airport (LTW), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) WNW of NHK.
- A highway extension to the new air station was required by the project—250,000 tons of material were transported by either truck or water routes during a year of construction.
- "Pax River" redirects here.
- In 1937, the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics sought to consolidate aviation test programs, previously being conducted at several stations, including Dahlgren and Norfolk, the Washington Navy Yard, Naval Air Station Anacostia in Washington, D.C., and the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- The furthest airport from Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,728 miles (18,874 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Since the end of the Cold War, the Pentagon's Base Realignment and Closure measures have migrated research and testing facilities for both rotary and fixed-wing aircraft to NAS Patuxent River from decommissioned bases.
- Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) has 3 runways.
- On 1 April 1976, Patuxent River's air field was named after pioneering aviator VADM Frederick M.
- Research and development at NAS Patuxent River forged ahead in the 1970s.
- By 1965, reconnaissance Squadron VQ-4, based at NAS Patuxent River, began using Lockheed C-130s equipped with special communications equipment to perform their around-the-clock Take Charge and Move Out mission.
- A lack of transportation in Saint Mary's County led the Navy to acquire and revitalize a branchline called theWashington, Brandywine and Point Lookout Railroad from Brandywine to Mechanicsville, Maryland in June 1942 and build an extension south from Mechanicsville to the air station.
- Because of Naval Air Station Patuxent River's relatively low elevation of 39 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station Patuxent River 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 "Naval Air Station Patuxent River", other names for NHK include "Trapnell Field" and "KNHK - FAA: NHK".
Facts about Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS):
- The airport has a 110,000 ft² passenger terminal with three second-level gates with passenger jet ways and three ground-level commuter gates with regional jet boarding bridges
- The closest airport to Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport (DSI), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) SSE of VPS.
- Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) has 2 runways.
- Because of Northwest Florida Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 87 feet, planes can take off or land at Northwest Florida 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.
- The furthest airport from Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,174 miles (17,983 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- In addition to being known as "Northwest Florida Regional Airport", another name for VPS is "Eglin Air Force Base".