Nonstop flight route between Mountain View, California, United States and Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), Mountain View, California, United States and Richards Bay Airport (RCB), Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,831 miles (or 17,430 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 Richards 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 Richards Bay 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):

• On April 16, 1942, control of the facility was returned to the Navy and it was re-commissioned as NAS Sunnyvale.
• Post-Cold War defense cutbacks and related Base Realignment and Closure actions in the 1990s identified NAS Moffett Field for closure.
• In April 2011, the exterior panels began coming down, starting at the top.
• In 2008, the Ames Research Center leased 42 acres around the field to Google.
• 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.
• 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 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 Richards Bay Airport (RCB):

• Richards Bay Airport (RCB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,689 miles (18,812 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Because of Richards Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 109 feet, planes can take off or land at Richards 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.
• The closest airport to Richards Bay Airport (RCB) is Hluhluwe Airport (HLW), which is located 52 miles (83 kilometers) NNE of RCB.