Nonstop flight route between Mountain View, California, United States and Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), Mountain View, California, United States and Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI), Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,009 miles (or 11,280 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 Great Barrier Reef 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 Great Barrier Reef 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 Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ):

• 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.
• In 1960, the nearby Air Force Satellite Test Center, was created adjacent to NAS Moffett Field.
• As an aftermath of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Navy wanted to use the airship hangars at Moffett for blimp operations along with Pacific Coast.
• Upon taking jurisdiction of Moffett Field, the Army took on the high cost of Hangar One's maintenance and wanted to inactivate the facility.
• 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.
• 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.
• A spirited debate is underway over the future of Hangar One.
• In September 2008, NASA indicated that it was still urging the Navy to restore the hangar, but that it is willing to help save the structure.
• Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) has 2 runways.
• 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.

Facts about Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI):

• Because of Great Barrier Reef Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Great Barrier Reef 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.
• Great Barrier Reef Airport handled 457,641 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI) is Whitsunday Airport (WSY), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) WNW of HTI.
• The furthest airport from Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,990 miles (19,297 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• *Sydney route included from July 2009
• In addition to being known as "Great Barrier Reef Airport", another name for HTI is "Hamilton Island".
• Great Barrier Reef Airport (HTI) currently has only 1 runway.