Nonstop flight route between Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States and De Ridder, Louisiana, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from VPS to DRI:
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- About this route
- VPS Airport Information
- DRI Airport Information
- Facts about VPS
- Facts about DRI
- Map of Nearest Airports to VPS
- List of Nearest Airports to VPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from VPS
- List of Furthest Airports from VPS
- Map of Nearest Airports to DRI
- List of Nearest Airports to DRI
- Map of Furthest Airports from DRI
- List of Furthest Airports from DRI
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS), Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States and Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base (DRI), De Ridder, Louisiana, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 406 miles (or 653 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 Northwest Florida Regional Airport and Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | VPS / KVPS |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 30°28'59"N by 86°31'31"W |
Area Served: | Fort Walton Beach, Destin |
Airport Type: | Public / Military |
Elevation: | 87 feet (27 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from VPS |
More Information: | VPS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | DRI / KDRI |
Airport Name: | Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base |
Location: | De Ridder, Louisiana, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 30°49'54"N by 93°20'24"W |
Area Served: | De Ridder, Louisiana |
Operator/Owner: | Beauregard Parish |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 202 feet (62 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from DRI |
More Information: | DRI Maps & Info |
Facts about Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS):
- Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) has 2 runways.
- In addition to being known as "Northwest Florida Regional Airport", another name for VPS is "Eglin Air Force Base".
- Because of Northwest Florida Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 87 feet, planes can take off or land at Northwest Florida Regional 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 Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,174 miles (17,983 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- The closest airport to Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport (DSI), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) SSE of VPS.
Facts about Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base (DRI):
- Initial training was performed by the III Reconnaissance Command, for reconnaissance and observation units.
- The closest airport to Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base (DRI) is Chennault International Airport (CWF), which is located 44 miles (72 kilometers) SSE of DRI.
- Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base (DRI) has 2 runways.
- An immediate construction program began to convert the civilian airport into a military airfield and support complex.
- In late 1942, the airfield was reassigned to III Tactical Air Command which performed medium and light bomber tactical bomber training.
- The furthest airport from Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base (DRI) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 10,994 miles (17,693 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
- The World War II hangar remains in use as the main hangar and terminal of the Beauregard Regional Airport.
- Because of Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base's relatively low elevation of 202 feet, planes can take off or land at Beauregard Regional AirportDeRidder Army Air Base 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.
- Interest in the military utilization of the airfield increased significantly in 1939 when war began in Europe.