Nonstop flight route between Santa Ana, California, United States and Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States and United States Air Force Academy (AFF), Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 804 miles (or 1,294 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 MCAS El Toro and United States Air Force Academy, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• In 1993, MCAS El Toro was designated for closing by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission and all of its activities were to be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
• The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
• The closing of MCAS El Toro ignited a political firestorm over the eventual fate of the facility.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The battle between pro-airport and anti-airport groups dominated Orange County politics for much of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
• The Department of the Navy hired the General Services Administration and Los Angeles-based Colliers International to assist in the sale of MCAS El Toro.
• Marine Corps Air Station El Toro was a United States Marine Corps Air Station located near Irvine, California.
• The base headquarters was established on November 4, 1942 and the first landing occurred in late November when a Major Micheal Carmichael, flying from Camp Kearny, was forced to make an emergency landing among the construction equipment.
• Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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.

Facts about United States Air Force Academy (AFF):

• The United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School is a program offered to selected individuals who were not able to obtain appointments directly to the Academy.
• The Academy's permanent site had not yet been completed when the first class entered, so the 306 cadets from the Class of 1959 were sworn in at a temporary site at Lowry Air Force Base, in Denver on 11 July 1955.
• Prior to the Academy's establishment, air power advocates had been pushing for a separate air force academy for decades.
• The campus of the Academy covers 18,500 acres on the east side of the Rampart Range of the Rocky Mountains, just north of Colorado Springs.
• The Cadet Area also contains extensive facilities for use by cadets participating in intercollegiate athletics, intramural athletics, physical education classes and other physical training.
• The effects of the anti-war movement were felt at the Academy as well.
• One of the most significant events in the history of the Academy was the admission of women.
• The furthest airport from United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,934 miles (17,596 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport (COS), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) SSE of AFF.