Nonstop flight route between Tucson, Arizona, United States and Atwater, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Tucson International Airport (TUS), Tucson, Arizona, United States and Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 656 miles (or 1,056 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 relatively short distance between Tucson International Airport and Castle Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Tucson International Airport (TUS):

• All international arrivals and departures use the Main Terminal.
• The closest airport to Tucson International Airport (TUS) is Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NE of TUS.
• Tucson International Airport handled 1,779,679 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Tucson International Airport (TUS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,513 miles (18,528 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Tucson International Airport (TUS) has 3 runways.
• In 1948 the Tucson Airport Authority was created as a non-profit corporation to operate the airport and oversee policy decisions.
• There has been a propensity in local Tucson / Pima County area news media outlets and other business and governmental entities in the Tucson metropolitan area outside of the professional aviation community to refer to the airport as "TIA" versus the airport's actual airport code of "TUS" in either reporting or reference.
• Tucson International is operated on a long-term lease by the Tucson Airport Authority, which also operates Ryan Airfield, a general aviation airport.
• On November 15, 1963 a new terminal designed by Terry Atkinson opened with an international inspection station.
• The airport covers 7,938 acres at an elevation of 2,643 feet above sea level.

Facts about Castle Airport (MER):

• The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
• Because of Castle Airport's relatively low elevation of 191 feet, planes can take off or land at Castle 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.
• It was estimated that the cost to relocate the 129 RQW to Castle, to include associated military construction costs, could be recouped in seven years.
• The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
• Castle Airport is a public use airport located seven nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Merced, a city in Merced County, California, United States.
• It serves one school, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics, which specializes in training foreign pilots, from the People's Republic of China.
• EPA investigations have been completed at multiple areas of contamination including landfills, discharge areas, chemical disposal areas, fire training areas, fuel spill areas, and polychlorinated biphenyl spill areas.
• The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.