Nonstop flight route between Mountain View, California, United States and Drake Bay, Costa Rica:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from NUQ to DRK:
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- About this route
- NUQ Airport Information
- DRK Airport Information
- Facts about NUQ
- Facts about DRK
- Map of Nearest Airports to NUQ
- List of Nearest Airports to NUQ
- Map of Furthest Airports from NUQ
- List of Furthest Airports from NUQ
- Map of Nearest Airports to DRK
- List of Nearest Airports to DRK
- Map of Furthest Airports from DRK
- List of Furthest Airports from DRK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), Mountain View, California, United States and Drake Bay Airport (DRK), Drake Bay, Costa Rica would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,107 miles (or 5,000 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 Moffett Federal Airfield and Drake Bay 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 Moffett Federal Airfield and Drake Bay Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | NUQ / KNUQ |
| Airport Name: | Moffett Federal Airfield |
| Location: | Mountain View, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°24'53"N by 122°2'53"W |
| Operator/Owner: | NASA Ames Research Center |
| Airport Type: | Private |
| Elevation: | 32 feet (10 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from NUQ |
| More Information: | NUQ Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | DRK / MRDK |
| Airport Name: | Drake Bay Airport |
| Location: | Drake Bay, Costa Rica |
| GPS Coordinates: | 8°43'58"N by 83°39'0"W |
| Area Served: | Drake Bay, Costa Rica |
| Operator/Owner: | n/a |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 13 feet (4 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from DRK |
| More Information: | DRK Maps & Info |
Facts about Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ):
- A spirited debate is underway over the future of Hangar One.
- Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- On 1 July 1994, NAS Moffett Field was closed as a naval air station and turned over to the NASA Ames Research Center.
- The Hangars One, Two, and Three, and the adjacent Shenandoah Plaza are collectively designated as a National Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- Because of Moffett Federal Airfield's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Moffett Federal Airfield 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.
- Upon taking jurisdiction of Moffett Field, the Army took on the high cost of Hangar One's maintenance and wanted to inactivate the facility.
- Moffett Field's Hangars Two and Three were built at the beginning of WWII for a program of coastal defense.
- The closest airport to Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) is Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of NUQ.
- The adjacent NASA Ames Research Center is also home to several wind tunnels, including the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel, and the National Full-Scale Aerodynamic Complex.
Facts about Drake Bay Airport (DRK):
- Because of Drake Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at Drake Bay 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.
- Drake Bay Airport (DRK) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Drake Bay Airport (DRK) is Palmar Sur Airport (PMZ), which is located only 20 miles (31 kilometers) NE of DRK.
- The furthest airport from Drake Bay Airport (DRK) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is nearly antipodal to Drake Bay Airport (meaning Drake Bay Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport), and is located 12,196 miles (19,627 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
