Nonstop flight route between Point Lay, Alaska, United States and San Bernardino, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ), Point Lay, Alaska, United States and Norton Air Force Base (SBD), San Bernardino, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,002 miles (or 4,832 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 Point Lay LRRS Airport and Norton Air Force 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 Point Lay LRRS Airport and Norton Air Force 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 Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ):

• Point Lay LRRS Airport has one runway designated 5/23 with a gravel surface measuring 3,519 by 80 feet.
• Because of Point Lay LRRS Airport's relatively low elevation of 25 feet, planes can take off or land at Point Lay LRRS 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 furthest airport from Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,387 miles (16,716 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.
• The LRR site was inactivated in 1989 due to soil erosion & budget concerns.
• The closest airport to Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) is Wainwright Airport (AIN), which is located 94 miles (152 kilometers) NE of PIZ.
• Point Lay LRRS Airport (PIZ) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Norton Air Force Base (SBD):

• During World War II, San Bernardino Army Airfield provided administrative and logistical support for the United States Army Desert Training Center.
• The SAGE Direction Center closed in 1966 along with the other ADC facilities at Norton.
• In 1950, Air Defense Command activated the 27th Air Division at Norton AFB, being assigned to the Western Air Defense Force.
• The closest airport to Norton Air Force Base (SBD) is San Bernardino International Airport (SBT), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) S of SBD.
• The furthest airport from Norton Air Force Base (SBD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,447 miles (18,423 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closure was cited as due to environmental wastes, inadequate facilities, and air traffic congestion west, and Los Angeles International Airport, 60 miles west).
• Discrete C-130 Hercules modification tests were conducted out of Area II of the base in the late 1960s, with the 1198th Operational Evaluation and Training Squadron operating four highly classified C-130E special operations testbeds modified at Lockheed Air Services, at near-by Ontario Airport under projects Thin Slice and Heavy Chain.
• In 1955, the 27th AD established a Manual Air-Defense Control Center at Norton to monitor and track aircraft in Southern California.
• In addition to being known as "Norton Air Force Base", another name for SBD is "Norton AFB".
• The aviation facilities of the base were converted into San Bernardino International Airport, and 3 of the 4 stationed squadrons – C-141 Starlifter, C-21, and C-12 Huron aircraft – were moved to nearby March Air Force Base, while the remaining squadron – C-141 aircraft – was moved to McChord Air Force Base, Washington.
• Norton Air Force Base was named for San Bernardino native Captain Leland Francis Norton.