Nonstop flight route between Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WAL to NQX:
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- About this route
- WAL Airport Information
- NQX Airport Information
- Facts about WAL
- Facts about NQX
- Map of Nearest Airports to WAL
- List of Nearest Airports to WAL
- Map of Furthest Airports from WAL
- List of Furthest Airports from WAL
- Map of Nearest Airports to NQX
- List of Nearest Airports to NQX
- Map of Furthest Airports from NQX
- List of Furthest Airports from NQX
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL), Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and NAS Key West (NQX), Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 993 miles (or 1,598 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 Wallops Flight Facility Airport and NAS Key West, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WAL / KWAL |
| Airport Name: | Wallops Flight Facility Airport |
| Location: | Wallops Island, Virginia, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°56'24"N by 75°27'59"W |
| Elevation: | 0 feet (0 meters) |
| View all routes: | Routes from WAL |
| More Information: | WAL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | NQX / KNQX |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Boca Chica Key, Florida, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 24°34'32"N by 81°41'20"W |
| Operator/Owner: | United States Navy |
| Airport Type: | Military: Naval Air Station |
| Elevation: | 6 feet (2 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from NQX |
| More Information: | NQX Maps & Info |
Facts about Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL):
- LCT2 is an effort to produce a relatively low-cost transceiver to allow launch vehicles to communicate through NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System after they have gone over the horizon from the launch site.
- The furthest airport from Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,785 miles (18,965 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Major Wallops facilities include FAA-certified runways.
- Because of Wallops Flight Facility Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wallops Flight Facility 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 closest airport to Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Accomack County Airport (MFV), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SW of WAL.
- The WFF mobile range assets have been used to support rocket launches from locations in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, South America, Africa, Europe, Australia, and at sea.
Facts about NAS Key West (NQX):
- The furthest airport from NAS Key West (NQX) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,575 miles (18,629 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
- NAS Key West was to become a focal point during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, which posed the first doorstep threat to America in more than a century.
- NAS Key West (NQX) has 3 runways.
- In addition to being known as "NAS Key West", other names for NQX include "Naval Air Station Key West" and "NQX[1]".
- By 1943, German submarines were operating so near Key West that they were sinking allied ships within sight of land.
- Because of NAS Key West's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at NAS Key West 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.
- After World War II ended, NAS Key West was retained as a training facility.
- In the late summer of 1994, NAS Key West also served as a primary staging base for Operations SUPPORT DEMOCRACY and UPHOLD DEMOCRACY in Haiti.
- On January 18, 1918, the first class of student aviators arrived for seaplane training, which launched the station's reputation as a premier training site for Naval Aviators, a reputation which continues today.
- The closest airport to NAS Key West (NQX) is Key West International Airport (EYW), which is located only 5 miles (7 kilometers) WSW of NQX.
- During World War I the base was expanded again, and in 1917, a U.S.
