Nonstop flight route between Kuressaare, Saaremaa, Estonia and Edwards, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kuressaare Airport (URE), Kuressaare, Saaremaa, Estonia and Edwards Air Force Base (EDW), Edwards, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,607 miles (or 9,024 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 Kuressaare Airport and Edwards Air Force Base, 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 Kuressaare Airport and Edwards Air Force Base. 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 Kuressaare Airport (URE):

• The first runway was built in the last half of the 1930s.
• In addition to being known as "Kuressaare Airport", another name for URE is "Kuressaare lennujaam".
• The closest airport to Kuressaare Airport (URE) is Kärdla Airport (KDL), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) NNE of URE.
• Kuressaare Airport (URE) has 2 runways.
• Because of Kuressaare Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Kuressaare 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 Kuressaare Airport (URE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,153 miles (17,949 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Edwards Air Force Base (EDW):

• The furthest airport from Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,414 miles (18,369 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• As a military airbase, civilian access is severely restricted, but is possible with prior coordination and good reason.
• Edwards is also home to several other units from DOD, Air Force, Army, Navy, FAA, USPS and many companies that support the primary mission or the personnel stationed there.
• The first major aerial activity occurred at Muroc in 1937 when the entire Army Air Corps participated in a large-scale maneuver.
• In the spring of 1942, however, the immense volume of flight test already being conducted at Wright Field, in Ohio, was one of the factors driving a search for a new site where a "Top Secret" airplane could undergo tests.
• The closest airport to Edwards Air Force Base (EDW) is Mojave Air and Space Port (MHV), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) NW of EDW.
• The initial use for Muroc was IV Bomber Command Operational Unit training.
• Four months later on 10 February 1948, Muroc AAF was re-designated Muroc Air Force Base with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military service.