Nonstop flight route between Rotterdam, Netherlands and Edwards, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM), Rotterdam, Netherlands and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,500 miles (or 8,852 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 Rotterdam The Hague 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 Rotterdam The Hague 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 Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM):

• The closest airport to Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) is Valkenburg Naval Air Base (LID), which is located only 15 miles (23 kilometers) N of RTM.
• Rotterdam The Hague Airport handled 159,014 passengers last year.
• Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,872 miles (19,107 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Rotterdam The Hague Airport's relatively low elevation of -14 feet, planes can take off or land at Rotterdam The Hague 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.
• The route with the longest continual service, to London Heathrow and operated by KLM Cityhopper, was suspended in 2008.

Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• Four months later on 10 February 1948, Muroc AAF was re-designated Muroc Air Force Base with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military service.
• A water stop on the Southern Pacific Railroad since 1876, the site was largely unsettled until the early 20th century.
• Aircraft testing continued at this desert "Army Air Base", then on 8 November 1943, the base title was changed to "Muroc Army Air Field, Muroc".
• In July 1942, Muroc Army Airfield became a separate airfield from March Field and was placed under the jurisdiction of Fourth Air Force.
• 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.
• Notable occurrences at Edwards include Chuck Yeager's flight that broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1, test flights of the North American X-15, the first landings of the Space Shuttle, and the 1986 around-the-world flight of the Rutan Voyager.
• 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.