Nonstop flight route between Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand and Fresno, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), Paraparaumu Beach, New Zealand and Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), Fresno, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,770 miles (or 10,896 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 Kapiti Coast Airport and Fresno Yosemite 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 Kapiti Coast Airport and Fresno Yosemite 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 Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ):

• Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Wellington International Airport (WLG), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) SSW of PPQ.
• The furthest airport from Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Kapiti Coast Airport (meaning Kapiti Coast Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,411 miles (19,973 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
• On 24 October 2011, Air Nelson, a subsidiary of Air New Zealand, commenced flights between Auckland and Paraparaumu.
• Paraparaumu was judged unsuitable for international operations in the 1950s due to Kapiti Island to the near west and the Tararua Ranges barely a mile east infringing the take-off and landing flightpaths.
• New Zealand's Civil Aviation Authority has recently approved the airport after identifying approach obstruction issues.
• On 6 November 1970, Douglas C-47B ZK-AXS of the Ministry of Transport was damaged beyond economic repair during a downwind simulated takeoff, when the undercarriage collapsed.
• As recently as 1992, alternate sites for a new airport for Wellington were investigated, including Paraparaumu, but a decision was made to upgrade Wellington Airport's existing site.
• Because of Kapiti Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at Kapiti Coast 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.

Facts about Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT):

• In 2011 over 1.2 million passengers traveled through Fresno Yosemite International Airport, a 6.4% increase from 2010.
• The closest airport to Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT) is Fresno Chandler Executive AirportChandler Municipal Airport (Old) (FCH), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of FAT.
• The furthest airport from Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,330 miles (18,234 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT) has 2 runways.
• The airfield was renamed Fresno Air Terminal, and retained a military cantonment area for an Army Air Forces unit of the National Guard that became a unit of the Air National Guard when the U.S.
• Because of Fresno Yosemite International Airport's relatively low elevation of 336 feet, planes can take off or land at Fresno Yosemite 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.
• Fresno Yosemite International Airport handled 569,879 passengers last year.
• In the 1990s there was a shift to smaller regional jet and turboprop aircraft.
• In 1988 the FAA designated the airport an "International Point of Entry", allowing international flights.
• Today the California Air National Guard 144th Fighter Wing occupies two separate parcels of land at the airport—the main base area and the Munitions Storage Area.