Nonstop flight route between Riverside, California, United States and Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between March Air Reserve Base (RIV), Riverside, California, United States and RAF Benson (BEX), Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,382 miles (or 8,662 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 March Air Reserve Base and RAF Benson, 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 March Air Reserve Base and RAF Benson. 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 March Air Reserve Base (RIV):

• Civilian agency flight activities include a permanently based U.S.
• The closest airport to March Air Reserve Base (RIV) is Flabob Airport (RIR), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) NW of RIV.
• The host unit at March is the Air Force Reserve's 452d Air Mobility Wing, which in addition to its operational flying mission, also provides host base support for numerous tenant units.
• The furthest airport from March Air Reserve Base (RIV) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,461 miles (18,445 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• As March Field began to take on the appearance of a permanent military installation, the base's basic mission changed.
• At the same time, the War Department announced its intentions to build several new military installations.
• On 1 May 1949, March became a part of the Strategic Air Command and the Fifteenth Air Force.
• Other activities at March ARB include F-16C/D alert site operations of the California Air National Guard's 144th Fighter Wing, which is also operationally-gained by ACC.

Facts about RAF Benson (BEX):

• The closest airport to RAF Benson (BEX) is RAF High Wycombe (HYC), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) ENE of BEX.
• The furthest airport from RAF Benson (BEX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,879 miles (19,118 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The future of RAF Benson was in doubt for some time, while Project Belvedere was looking into closing at least one of Joint Helicopter Command's airfields.
• The station retained a reconnaissance role for some years after the war, with Avro Lancaster, Spitfire, Mosquito, Gloster Meteor PR.Mk 10 and English Electric Canberra PR.Mk 3 aircraft.
• The Battles were replaced in December 1940 with Vickers Wellington medium bombers.