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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU), Fairfield, California, United States and RAF Benson (BEX), Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,277 miles (or 8,493 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 Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield 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 Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield 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 Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU):

• The Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District commenced work in 1959 on a CIM-10 Bomarc surface-to-air missile installation near Travis 38°29′14″N 121°53′07″W / 38.48722°N 121.88528°W / 38.48722.
• The closest airport to Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU) is Nut Tree Airport (VCB), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NNW of SUU.
• In addition to being known as "Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield", another name for SUU is "Travis AFB".
• The sites at Elmira and Fairfield/Cement Hill later received modifications to accept the Nike Hercules missile, while the sites at Dixon/Lambie and Potrero Hills were inactivated in 1959.
• Travis AFB also plays host to the Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum, one of the largest collections of military aircraft on the west coast.
• The furthest airport from Travis Air Force Base Fairfield-Suisun Army Airfield (SUU) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,315 miles (18,210 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• On 1 May 1949, the Strategic Air Command became the parent major command for Travis AFB, turning it into a major long-range reconnaissance and intercontinental bombing installation for the 9th Bomb Group/9th Bomb Wing.

Facts about RAF Benson (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.
• Its Supermarine Spitfire and de Havilland Mosquito aircraft flew missions over occupied Europe, for example bringing back battle damage assessment pictures after Operation Chastise.
• 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 closest airport to RAF Benson (BEX) is RAF High Wycombe (HYC), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) ENE of BEX.
• The Chiltern Air Support Unit helicopter and the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance helicopter are also both located here as lodger units.
• The station is today the home to four squadrons of Support Helicopters, 28 Squadron, 78 Squadron with Merlin helicopters and 33 Squadron and 230 Squadron with Puma helicopters.