Nonstop flight route between Santa Ana, California, United States and Celle, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States and Celle Air Base (ZCN), Celle, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,699 miles (or 9,171 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 Celle Air Base, 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 Celle Air Base. 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Celle Air Base (ZCN):

• Until the end of World War II the airfield operated under the name of Fliegerhorst Celle-Wietzenbruch.
• The furthest airport from Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,761 miles (18,928 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Hannover Airport (HAJ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) WSW of ZCN.
• Under British occupation metal plates were laid on the entire airfield in order to enable the landing of larger aircraft.
• Due to the tense situation during the building of the Berlin Wall a small unit of the National Guard of the United States was stationed at Celle Air Base in 1961 in case of a second Berlin Airlift.
• Because of Celle Air Base's relatively low elevation of 129 feet, planes can take off or land at Celle Air Base 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.
• Celle Air Base (ZCN) currently has only 1 runway.
• After World War I the airfield was initially abandoned even though some flights took place in the 1920s.
• In addition to being known as "Celle Air Base", other names for ZCN include "Heeresflugplatz Celle" and "(Advanced Landing Ground B-118)".