Nonstop flight route between San Bernardino, California, United States and Chartres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Norton Air Force Base (SBD), San Bernardino, California, United States and Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (QTJ), Chartres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,601 miles (or 9,014 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 Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome, 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 Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome. 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Norton was placed on the Department of Defense's base closure list in 1989.
• In addition to being known as "Norton Air Force Base", another name for SBD is "Norton AFB".
• Norton AFB was closed as a result of Base Realignment and Closure action 1988 in 1994.
• 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.
• A base railroad system interchanged with the Pacific Electric/Southern Pacific branch line on the south side of the installation.

Facts about Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (QTJ):

• The closest airport to Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (QTJ) is Toussus-le-Noble Airport (TNF), which is located 33 miles (54 kilometers) NE of QTJ.
• The airfield was first attacked by the German Luftwaffe on 3 June by a formation of 15 twin engine Dornier Do-17 light bombers.
• Under American control, Chartres initially became the home of the 368th Fighter Group, which flew P-47 Thunderbolts from the field starting on 23 August, remaining until 11 September.
• From March 1915 to the end of World War I, an important military training center for pilots was setted up .
• In addition to being known as "Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome", other names for QTJ include "Aérodrome de Chartres - Champhol" and "Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) A-40".
• The field was replaced by a totally new civilian facility which is much smaller than the prewar airport.
• The furthest airport from Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (QTJ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (meaning Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,101 miles (19,475 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Just prior to the D-Day landings in Normandy, additional attacks were made on the airfield by B-26 Marauder medium bombers of the IX Bomber Command 322d Bombardment Group during May 1944.
• Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome (QTJ) has 2 runways.
• It remains an important Air Force Base after 1953, included technical Units, a military training center and a broadcasting station.
• The first plane in the world took off on October, the 9th, 1890, in France, due to the engineer Clément Ader.
• The combat units moved out at the end of October 1944, and until the end of the war, Chartres became a resupply and combat casualty evacuation airfield, and performing other support roles for the Allies.
• Because of Chartres - Champhol Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 509 feet, planes can take off or land at Chartres - Champhol 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.