Nonstop flight route between Pau, France and Edwards, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF), Pau, France and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,750 miles (or 9,253 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 Pau Pyrénées Airport and Edwards 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 Pau Pyrénées Airport and Edwards 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 Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF):

• The furthest airport from Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Pau Pyrénées Airport (meaning Pau Pyrénées Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,236 miles (19,692 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Pau Pyrénées Airport (PUF) is Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport (LDE), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) ESE of PUF.
• Because of Pau Pyrénées Airport's relatively low elevation of 616 feet, planes can take off or land at Pau Pyrénées 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.
• In addition to being known as "Pau Pyrénées Airport", another name for PUF is "Aéroport Pau Pyrénées".

Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• At this time, another colorful character in Edwards' history, Pancho Barnes, built her renowned Rancho Oro Verde Fly-Inn Dude Ranch that would be the scene of many parties and celebrations to come.
• The first major aerial activity occurred at Muroc in 1937 when the entire Army Air Corps participated in a large-scale maneuver.
• The furthest airport from Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,414 miles (18,369 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) NW of EDW.
• In the spring of 1942, however, the immense volume of flight test already being conducted at Wright Field, in Ohio, was one of the factors driving a search for a new site where a "Top Secret" airplane could undergo tests.
• The base is next to Rogers Dry Lake, an endorheic desert salt pan whose hard dry lake surface provides a natural extension to Edwards' runways.
• The success of these programs attracted a new type of research activity to the base in late 1946.