Nonstop flight route between Santa Ana, California, United States and Drake Bay, Costa Rica:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from NZJ to DRK:
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- About this route
- NZJ Airport Information
- DRK Airport Information
- Facts about NZJ
- Facts about DRK
- Map of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- List of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from NZJ
- List of Furthest Airports from NZJ
- 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 MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States and Drake Bay Airport (DRK), Drake Bay, Costa Rica would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,767 miles (or 4,454 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 MCAS El Toro 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 MCAS El Toro 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: | NZJ / KNZJ |
Airport Name: | MCAS El Toro |
Location: | Santa Ana, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°40'33"N by 117°43'51"W |
Operator/Owner: | United States Marine Corps |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 383 feet (117 meters) |
# of Runways: | 5 |
View all routes: | Routes from NZJ |
More Information: | NZJ 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 MCAS El Toro (NZJ):
- Before the site could be developed for civilian use, the Department of the Navy was required to perform environmental remediation to clean up contaminated soil on the site.
- Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.
- Over the years, the VOCs had seeped into the groundwater, resulting in a plume of contaminated groundwater extending for three miles to the west of the station.
- Already the largest Marine air station on the West Coast, in 1944, funds were approved to double its size and operations.
- 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.
- 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 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 closing of MCAS El Toro ignited a political firestorm over the eventual fate of the facility.
- MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
Facts about Drake Bay Airport (DRK):
- Drake Bay Airport (DRK) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- The closest airport to Drake Bay Airport (DRK) is Palmar Sur Airport (PMZ), which is located only 20 miles (31 kilometers) NE of 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.