Nonstop flight route between San Bernardino, California, United States and Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Norton Air Force Base (SBD), San Bernardino, California, United States and Gold Coast Airport (OOL), Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,240 miles (or 11,651 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 Norton Air Force Base and Gold Coast 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 Norton Air Force Base and Gold Coast 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 Norton Air Force Base (SBD):

• In 1950, Air Defense Command activated the 27th Air Division at Norton AFB, being assigned to the Western Air Defense Force.
• The closest airport to Norton Air Force Base (SBD) is San Bernardino International Airport (SBT), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) S of SBD.
• In the 1960s, Norton expanded its depot support mission by supporting Titan and Atlas Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles s, with depot-level logistical support.
• In addition to being known as "Norton Air Force Base", another name for SBD is "Norton AFB".
• The furthest airport from Norton Air Force Base (SBD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,447 miles (18,423 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• With the air force moving into the jet age in the late 1940s, Norton began overhauling jet engines in 1951, and the San Bernardino Air Materiel Area became one of three air force jet overhaul centers by 1953.
• The last of the facilities on the base were closed in 1995.
• Norton was placed on the Department of Defense's base closure list in 1989.
• Discrete C-130 Hercules modification tests were conducted out of Area II of the base in the late 1960s, with the 1198th Operational Evaluation and Training Squadron operating four highly classified C-130E special operations testbeds modified at Lockheed Air Services, at near-by Ontario Airport under projects Thin Slice and Heavy Chain.
• Norton Air Force Base was named for San Bernardino native Captain Leland Francis Norton.

Facts about Gold Coast Airport (OOL):

• On 16 November 2010 Jetstar announced new daily direct services to Hobart.
• Despite the name change from Coolangatta Airport to Gold Coast Airport during the change of ownership, the airport still carries its original IATA Airport code, OOL.
• On 11 December 2013 Jetstar announced that they will end the three times weekly services to Osaka-Kansai on 8 May 2014.
• An Instrument Landing System is scheduled to be installed at the airport by June 2015 to enable planes to land during adverse weather conditions.
• Gold Coast Airport handled 5,261,773 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is Ballina Byron Gateway Airport (BNK), which is located 46 miles (75 kilometers) S of OOL.
• Because of Gold Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Gold Coast 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 furthest airport from Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is La Palma Airport (SPC), which is located 11,905 miles (19,159 kilometers) away in La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
• Gold Coast Airport (OOL) has 2 runways.