Nonstop flight route between Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States and Big Spring, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NAS Key West (NQX), Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,313 miles (or 2,113 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 NAS Key West and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about NAS Key West (NQX):

• NAS Key West was to become a focal point during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, which posed the first doorstep threat to America in more than a century.
• Because of NAS Key West's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS Key West 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 1946, Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 was established at NAS Key West and for the next three decades conducted airborne antisubmarine warfare systems evaluation out of Boca Chica, while Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron 1 conducted Atlantic Fleet helicopter fleet replacement training in the SH-3 Sea King out of the former seaplane base at Trumbo Point.
• The nation's southernmost Naval Base proved to be an ideal year-round training facility with rapid access to the open sea lanes and ideal flying conditions for Naval Aviation.
• The seaplane base was designated as a Naval Air Station Key West on 15 December 1940 and served as an operating and training base for fleet aircraft squadrons, to include seaplane, land-based aircraft, carrier-based aircraft and lighter-than-air blimp squadrons.
• The closest airport to NAS Key West (NQX) is Key West International Airport (EYW), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WSW of NQX.
• During the 1980s and into the mid-1990s, NAS Key West's Trumbo Point Annex and Truman Annex waterfront pier areas served as the home port for the Pegasus-class hydrofoils of Patrol Hydrofoil Missile Squadron ONE.
• Naval Base Key West was reopened just prior to the United States' entry into World War II to support Navy destroyers, submarines, patrol craft and PBY flying boat and amphibious aircraft.
• NAS Key West (NQX) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from NAS Key West (NQX) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,575 miles (18,629 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• In addition to being known as "NAS Key West", other names for NQX include "Naval Air Station Key West" and "NQX[1]".

Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• By 1960, the consolidated pilot training program meant the consolidation of preflight, primary, and basic instruction into one school.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
• At that time, nearly 6,000 students had graduated and the field's training aircraft had flown approximately 400,000 hours and more than 60 million miles.
• Construction of the Army Air Forces Bombardier School began on 15 May 1942, and the airfield received its first class of cadets on 16 September 1942.
• Webb AFB was turned over to the General Services Agency for disposal on 1 January 1978 and the property later turned over to the Big Spring Industrial Park.
• The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.
• The Air Force established a standard wing structure—a dual deputy concept—in 1963.
• Perhaps the most dominant feature on the ATC landscape in 1974 was the serious fuel shortage the command had to contend with for much of the year.