Nonstop flight route between Sola, Vanua Lava, Torba Province, Vanuatu and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Vanua Lava Airport (SLH), Sola, Vanua Lava, Torba Province, Vanuatu and Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,685 miles (or 9,150 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 Vanua Lava Airport and Merrill Field, 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 Vanua Lava Airport and Merrill Field. 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 Vanua Lava Airport (SLH):

• Because of Vanua Lava Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Vanua Lava 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 closest airport to Vanua Lava Airport (SLH) is Mota Lava Airport (MTV), which is located only 17 miles (28 kilometers) NE of SLH.
• The furthest airport from Vanua Lava Airport (SLH) is Bakel Airport (BXE), which is nearly antipodal to Vanua Lava Airport (meaning Vanua Lava Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Bakel Airport), and is located 12,368 miles (19,904 kilometers) away in Bakel, Senegal.

Facts about Merrill Field (MRI):

• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
• Merrill Field, located on the east end of 5th Avenue in Anchorage, Alaska, was the only airport serving Anchorage until 1951 when the introduction of ever larger and faster commercial aircraft required that an airfield with longer and heavier runways be built.
• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill Field 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.