Nonstop flight route between Mountain View, California, United States and Mendi, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), Mountain View, California, United States and Mendi Airport (MDU), Mendi, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,711 miles (or 10,801 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 Mendi 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 Mendi 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):

• Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) has 2 runways.
• On 1 July 1994, NAS Moffett Field was closed as a naval air station and turned over to the NASA Ames Research Center.
• The US Navy is evaluating options for remediating the PCBs, lead and asbestos, and NASA is evaluating options for reuse of the hangar.
• In August 2008, the Navy proposed simply stripping the toxic coating from the hangar and leaving the skeleton after spraying it with a preservative.
• 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.
• After the crashing of the Macon on 12 February 1935, the Navy wanted to close Moffett Field due to its high cost of operations.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Mendi Airport (MDU):

• Mendi Airport (MDU) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Mendi Airport's high elevation of 5,680 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at MDU. Combined with a high temperature, this could make MDU a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Mendi Airport (MDU) is Pinto Martins – Fortaleza International Airport (FOR), which is located 11,735 miles (18,885 kilometers) away in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Mendi Airport (MDU) is Moro Airport (MXH), which is located 32 miles (52 kilometers) WSW of MDU.