Nonstop flight route between Vila Real, Portugal and Mountain View, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Vila Real Airport (VRL), Vila Real, Portugal and Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), Mountain View, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,603 miles (or 9,017 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 Vila Real Airport and Moffett Federal Airfield, 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 Vila Real Airport and Moffett Federal Airfield. 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 Vila Real Airport (VRL):

• Vila Real Airport (VRL) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Vila Real Airport", another name for VRL is "Aeródromo Municipal de Vila Real".
• The closest airport to Vila Real Airport (VRL) is Braga Airport (BGZ), which is located 43 miles (70 kilometers) WNW of VRL.
• The furthest airport from Vila Real Airport (VRL) is Takaka Aerodrome (KTF), which is nearly antipodal to Vila Real Airport (meaning Vila Real Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Takaka Aerodrome), and is located 12,399 miles (19,955 kilometers) away in Takaka, New Zealand.

Facts about Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ):

• In 2008, the Ames Research Center leased 42 acres around the field to Google.
• Because of Moffett Federal Airfield's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Moffett Federal Airfield 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 closest airport to Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) is Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of NUQ.
• Moffett Federal Airfield, also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located between southern Mountain View and northern Sunnyvale, California, USA.
• On April 16, 1942, control of the facility was returned to the Navy and it was re-commissioned as NAS Sunnyvale.
• The adjacent NASA Ames Research Center is also home to several wind tunnels, including the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel, and the National Full-Scale Aerodynamic Complex.
• Post-Cold War defense cutbacks and related Base Realignment and Closure actions in the 1990s identified NAS Moffett Field for closure.
• The furthest airport from Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Moffett Field's "Hangar One" and the row of World War II blimp hangars are still some of the largest unsupported structures in the country.
• In April 2011, the exterior panels began coming down, starting at the top.
• Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) has 2 runways.