Nonstop flight route between Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Oakland (near San Francisco), California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK), Prestwick (near Glasgow), Scotland, United Kingdom and Oakland International Airport (OAK), Oakland (near San Francisco), California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,026 miles (or 8,089 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport and Oakland International 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport and Oakland International 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 Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK):

• The furthest airport from Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,764 miles (18,932 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• 1992 marked the beginning of a renaissance for the struggling airport when purchased by "Canadian entrepreneur" Matthew Hudson in a "dramatic rescue".
• Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) has 2 runways.
• Today, part of the Prestwick site is occupied by the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm with RNAS Prestwick, where a detachment of 3 Sea Kings provide a search and rescue role, covering one of the largest SAR areas of the UK including Ben Nevis, the Lakes, Northern Ireland and 200 NM past the Irish coast.
• In physical terms, Prestwick is Scotland's largest commercial airfield, although in passenger traffic terms it sits in fourth place after Edinburgh Airport, Glasgow International, and Aberdeen Airport.
• Since 2007 the airport has occasionally been used by BBC motoring TV show Top Gear as the location for various stunts and experiments.
• Because of Glasgow-Prestwick Airport's relatively low elevation of 65 feet, planes can take off or land at Glasgow-Prestwick 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.
• However on 21 April 2008, during a BBC Two radio interview with Ken Bruce, theatre impresario and chairman of Everton F.C., Bill Kenwright, said that Elvis actually spent a day in the UK being shown around London by Tommy Steele in 1958.
• The closest airport to Glasgow-Prestwick Airport (PIK) is Glasgow International Airport (GLA), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) NNE of PIK.
• Glasgow-Prestwick Airport handled 1,145,836 passengers last year.
• Glasgow Prestwick Airport is Glasgow's second airport, it also serves the Greater Glasgow urban area, situated 1 nautical mile Northeast of the town of Prestwick in South Ayrshire and 32 mi from the city centre of Glasgow.

Facts about Oakland International Airport (OAK):

• The Port of Oakland is an independent department of the city of Oakland and is required to do its part to be a good neighbor, an environmental steward, and a responsible business operator in its efforts to support the city's sustainability goals.
• For the airport in Oakland County, Michigan, see Oakland County International Airport.
• The furthest airport from Oakland International Airport (OAK) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,354 miles (18,273 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In 2008 Oakland suffered a series of service cutbacks due to high fuel costs and airline bankruptcies, more than other Bay Area airports.
• Oakland International Airport (OAK) has 4 runways.
• Oakland International Airport began a $300 million expansion and renovation project in 2004, including adding five gates in Terminal 2.
• Allegiant Air inaugurated service at OAK in February 2009, with Bellingham, Washington twice weekly.
• Because of Oakland International Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Oakland International 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 closest airport to Oakland International Airport (OAK) is Hayward Executive Airport (HWD), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) SE of OAK.
• Passengers at the airport peaked in 2007 at 14.6 million and declined to 9.3 million in 2011.
• During the Vietnam War, World Airways shuttled thousands of military passengers through Oakland to their bases in Southeast Asia, and an International Arrivals facility was built, allowing the airport to handle international flights for the first time.