Nonstop flight route between Porterville, California, United States and Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV), Porterville, California, United States and Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,391 miles (or 8,676 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 Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield and Fuaʻamotu 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 Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield and Fuaʻamotu 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 Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV):

• The closest airport to Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) is Mefford Field (TLR), which is located only 17 miles (28 kilometers) WNW of PTV.
• The furthest airport from Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,368 miles (18,294 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield (PTV) currently has only 1 runway.
• At the end of the war the airfield was determined to be excess by the military and turned over to the local government for civil use.
• Because of Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 442 feet, planes can take off or land at Porterville Municipal AirportPorterville Army Airfield 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU):

• Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (TMR), which is nearly antipodal to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (meaning Fuaʻamotu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Tamanrasset, Algeria.
• Some short-haul international flights such as to Fiji or American Samoa also operate from Vavaʻu Island's Lupepauʻu Airport from time to time.
• Because of Fuaʻamotu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Fuaʻamotu 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.
• Until August 2006, Peau Vavaʻu used a DC-3 on their domestic routes, but this has recently been replaced with a Jetstream 41.
• The closest airport to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Lifuka Island Airport (HPA), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NNE of TBU.