Nonstop flight route between Santa Ana, California, United States and Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States and Puerto Cabezas Airport (PUZ), Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,540 miles (or 4,088 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 Puerto Cabezas 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 Puerto Cabezas 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):

• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
• In May 1942, Lieutenant Colonel William Fox was directed to select the sites for all of the Marine Corps' West Coast air stations.
• Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.
• 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 site is currently used as a filming location, including the test track for the United States version of BBC's Top Gear franchise.
• 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.
• 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.
• The battle between pro-airport and anti-airport groups dominated Orange County politics for much of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
• Those against the airport proposal were largely residents of the cities in the immediate vicinity of El Toro, such as Irvine, Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Dana Point, and Mission Viejo, where residents were alarmed at the idea of the aircraft noise.
• 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.

Facts about Puerto Cabezas Airport (PUZ):

• The closest airport to Puerto Cabezas Airport (PUZ) is Waspam Airport (WSP), which is located 62 miles (100 kilometers) NW of PUZ.
• It has an asphalted runway, 2,478 m × 51 m.
• The furthest airport from Puerto Cabezas Airport (PUZ) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is nearly antipodal to Puerto Cabezas Airport (meaning Puerto Cabezas Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport), and is located 12,308 miles (19,808 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• There are plans to make the airport an international airport.
• The airport is approximately one kilometre from the city center, and there are taxis, buses, and other forms of transportation available.
• Puerto Cabezas Airport (PUZ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Puerto Cabezas Airport's relatively low elevation of 69 feet, planes can take off or land at Puerto Cabezas 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 terminal currently services daily regular flights by airline Avianca Nicaragua as well as for charter flights to Managua and other air terminals on the Atlantic Coast.