Nonstop flight route between Santa Ana, California, United States and Nelson Lagoon, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States and Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG), Nelson Lagoon, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,563 miles (or 4,125 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 Nelson Lagoon 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 Nelson Lagoon 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 MCAS El Toro (NZJ):

• 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.
• In May 1942, Lieutenant Colonel William Fox was directed to select the sites for all of the Marine Corps' West Coast air stations.
• 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.
• 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.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• 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.
• Already the largest Marine air station on the West Coast, in 1944, funds were approved to double its size and operations.
• The land area originally taken by the air station is planned to be converted into a large recreational center, the Orange County Great Park.
• Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.

Facts about Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG):

• The closest airport to Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG) is Port Moller Airport (PML), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) E of NLG.
• Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG) currently has only 1 runway.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, this airport had 290 commercial passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, a decrease of 4% from the 302 enplanements in 2007.
• In addition to being known as "Nelson Lagoon Airport", another name for NLG is "OUL".
• Nelson Lagoon Airport has one runway designated 8/26 with a gravel surface measuring 4,000 by 75 feet.
• The furthest airport from Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,914 miles (17,564 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• Because of Nelson Lagoon Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Nelson Lagoon 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.