Nonstop flight route between Ventspils, Latvia and Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ventspils International Airport (VNT), Ventspils, Latvia and Patrick Air Force Base (COF), Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,019 miles (or 8,078 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 Ventspils International Airport and Patrick 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 Ventspils International Airport and Patrick 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 Ventspils International Airport (VNT):

• In addition to being known as "Ventspils International Airport", another name for VNT is "Ventspils Starptautiskā Lidosta".
• In addition to commercial traffic, state departments used the airport for various reasons.
• The furthest airport from Ventspils International Airport (VNT) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,220 miles (18,057 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Ventspils International Airport (VNT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The main conclusions of this research were that the rehabilitation of the airport would enhance the efficiency of transport corridors and foster economic activity in the region.
• At the start of 2001 all documentation for the airport exploitation was prepared and a modern security program was developed.
• Because of Ventspils International Airport's relatively low elevation of 19 feet, planes can take off or land at Ventspils International 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.
• On 11 April 2008 Latvian national airline airBaltic began the first regular service from the airport to Riga but ceased after few months due to low patronage.
• The closest airport to Ventspils International Airport (VNT) is Liepāja International Airport (LPX), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) SSW of VNT.
• The possibility re-opening the airport was first discussed in the mid-1990s by which time Ventspils had become an important transport hub.

Facts about Patrick Air Force Base (COF):

• The 920th Rescue Wing, part of Air Force Reserve Command, is another tenant command headquartered at Patrick AFB and is the installation's only military flying unit.
• The host wing for Patrick AFB is the 45th Space Wing, whose officers and airmen manage all launches of unmanned rockets at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station 12 miles to the north.
• In addition to being known as "Patrick Air Force Base", another name for COF is "Patrick AFB".
• NAS Banana River was transferred to the United States Air Force on September 1, 1948 and renamed the Joint Long Range Proving Ground on June 10, 1949.
• Three months after World War II, on December 5, 1945, NAS Banana River had an ancillary role in the disappearance of Flight 19, a formation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, which had departed NAS Fort Lauderdale, Florida on a routine over-water training mission.
• The furthest airport from Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,550 miles (18,587 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Patrick Air Force Base (COF) is Merritt Island Airport (COI), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NNW of COF.
• US Navy Boeing E-6 Mercury aircraft, part of Operation Looking Glass, were sometimes seen at Patrick AFB during the 2010-11 time frame and were often mistaken by onlookers for the previously retired VC-137 Presidential aircraft, which looks similar.