Nonstop flight route between Ketchikan, Alaska, United States and Ponce, Puerto Rico:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB), Ketchikan, Alaska, United States and Mercedita Airport (PSE), Ponce, Puerto Rico would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,227 miles (or 6,803 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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base and Mercedita Airport, 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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base and Mercedita Airport. 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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB):

• The furthest airport from Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 10,613 miles (17,079 kilometers) away in Port Alfred, South Africa.
• Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) is Ketchikan International Airport (KTN), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) WNW of WFB.
• In addition to being known as "Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base", another name for WFB is "5KE".
• Because of Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane 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.

Facts about Mercedita Airport (PSE):

• On August 12, 1981, an Air Florida plane with 125 Haitian refugees aboard landed at Mercedita en route to the Fort Allen facility in Juana Diaz, part of the 1981 Haitian refugees exodus.
• The closest airport to Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport (ARE), which is located 31 miles (51 kilometers) NNW of PSE.
• On June 24, 1972, Prinair Flight 191, which took off from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, crashed while attempting to land at Mercedita Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Mercedita Airport", other names for PSE include "Aeropuerto Mercedita" and "18.00'30"N, 66.33'47"W".
• Mercedita Airport covers an area of 274 acres at an elevation of 29 feet above mean sea level.
• Because of Mercedita Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Mercedita 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 Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Barrow Island Airport (BWB), which is nearly antipodal to Mercedita Airport (meaning Mercedita Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Barrow Island Airport), and is located 12,201 miles (19,636 kilometers) away in Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia.
• Mercedita Airport (PSE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Puerto Rico Ports Authority recently announced an investment of 7 million dollars to extend Mercedita's runway to 8,000 feet.
• In early 2010, members of the Ponce Chamber of Commerce strongly criticized the Puerto Rico Ports Authority and its director Alvaro Pilar Villagran after failure to execute on a legally binding agreement of November 2008, whereby the Ports Authority agreed to an investment of $8 million to build an airport drainage system needed as part of any additional expansion work.