Nonstop flight route between Duxford, England, United Kingdom and Ponce, Puerto Rico:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Duxford Aerodrome (QFO), Duxford, England, United Kingdom and Mercedita Airport (PSE), Ponce, Puerto Rico would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,259 miles (or 6,853 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 Duxford Aerodrome and Mercedita 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 Duxford Aerodrome and Mercedita 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 Duxford Aerodrome (QFO):

• The furthest airport from Duxford Aerodrome (QFO) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,843 miles (19,060 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In 1938 No.19 Squadron was the first RAF squadron to fly the new Supermarine Spitfire.
• The 350th Fighter Group was activated at Duxford on 1 October 1942 by special authority granted to the Eighth Air Force with a nucleus of P-39 Airacobra pilots with the intention of providing a ground attack fighter organisation for the Twelfth Air Force in the forthcoming Operation Torch,.
• The closest airport to Duxford Aerodrome (QFO) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NNE of QFO.
• Duxford Aerodrome (QFO) has 2 runways.
• Because of Duxford Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 125 feet, planes can take off or land at Duxford Aerodrome 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.
• On 1 December 1945, a few weeks after the departure of the 78th Fighter Group, Duxford was returned to the RAF.
• Duxford became the home of several specialist units, including the Air Fighting Development Unit, which moved to the station at the end of 1940.
• In addition to being known as "Duxford Aerodrome", other names for QFO include "Royal Air Force Station Duxford" and "USAAF Station 357".

Facts about Mercedita Airport (PSE):

• In 1949, however, it was determined that the runway of the Ponce Airport at the nearby Losey Field no longer met the newer and more stringent minimum airport safety requirements, and airport operations were suspended.
• The furthest airport from Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Barrow Island Airport (BWB), which is nearly antipodal to Mercedita Airport (meaning Mercedita Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Barrow Island Airport), and is located 12,201 miles (19,636 kilometers) away in Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Mercedita Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Mercedita 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.
• Mercedita Airport (PSE) currently has only 1 runway.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 110,159 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 90,267 enplanements in 2009, and 97,660 in 2010.
• In addition to being known as "Mercedita Airport", other names for PSE include "Aeropuerto Mercedita" and "18.00'30"N, 66.33'47"W".
• The closest airport to Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport (ARE), which is located 31 miles (51 kilometers) NNW of PSE.
• The Puerto Rico Ports Authority recently announced an investment of 7 million dollars to extend Mercedita's runway to 8,000 feet.
• Passenger movement at the airport in FY 2008 was 278,911, a 1,228% increase over fiscal year 2003 and the highest of all the regional airports for that 5-year period.
• In early 2010, members of the Ponce Chamber of Commerce strongly criticized the Puerto Rico Ports Authority and its director Alvaro Pilar Villagran after failure to execute on a legally binding agreement of November 2008, whereby the Ports Authority agreed to an investment of $8 million to build an airport drainage system needed as part of any additional expansion work.