Nonstop flight route between Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and Raton, New Mexico, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL), Wallops Island, Virginia, United States and Raton Municipal Airport (RTN), Raton, New Mexico, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,591 miles (or 2,560 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 Raton Municipal Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL):

• 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.
• AFSS is a project to develop an autonomous on-board system that could augment or replace traditional ground-commanded Range Safety flight termination systems.
• 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.
• Weather measurements and predictions are critical to all Research Airport operations, rocket and balloon launches, and in safely conducting hazardous operations on the ground.
• In 1959, NASA acquired the former Naval Air Station Chincoteague, and engineering and administrative activities were moved to this location.
• The WFF Main Base is located on the Eastern Shore of Virginia on the Delmarva Peninsula about 5 miles west of Chincoteague, Virginia.
• The closest airport to Wallops Flight Facility Airport (WAL) is Accomack County Airport (MFV), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) SW of WAL.
• In 1945, NASA's predecessor agency, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, established a rocket launch site on Wallops Island under the direction of the Langley Research Center.
• Since 2001, engineers at NASA Wallops Flight Facility have been developing new range technologies, systems and approaches to improve the cost and responsiveness of launch and flight test activities, within the constraints of available funding and program schedules.
• The NASA Wallops Flight Facility has alliances with a number of organizations important to its mission and future growth.

Facts about Raton Municipal Airport (RTN):

• Raton Municipal Airport (RTN) has 2 runways.
• Because of Raton Municipal Airport's high elevation of 6,352 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at RTN. Combined with a high temperature, this could make RTN a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Raton Municipal Airport (RTN) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,053 miles (17,788 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Until around 1954 Continental Airlines stopped there, a DC-3 a day each way between Denver and Albuquerque, but Raton may not have seen an airliner since then.
• The closest airport to Raton Municipal Airport (RTN) is Perry Stokes Airport (TAD), which is located 37 miles (59 kilometers) NNE of RTN.
• In addition to being known as "Raton Municipal Airport", another name for RTN is "Crews Field".