Nonstop flight route between Wellington, New Zealand and Santa Ana, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WLG to NZJ:
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- About this route
- WLG Airport Information
- NZJ Airport Information
- Facts about WLG
- Facts about NZJ
- Map of Nearest Airports to WLG
- List of Nearest Airports to WLG
- Map of Furthest Airports from WLG
- List of Furthest Airports from WLG
- Map of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- List of Nearest Airports to NZJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from NZJ
- List of Furthest Airports from NZJ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wellington International Airport (WLG), Wellington, New Zealand and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,721 miles (or 10,817 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 Wellington International Airport and MCAS El Toro, 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 Wellington International Airport and MCAS El Toro. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | WLG / NZWN |
Airport Name: | Wellington International Airport |
Location: | Wellington, New Zealand |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°19'37"S by 174°48'19"E |
Area Served: | Wellington, New Zealand |
Operator/Owner: | Infratil, Wellington City Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 42 feet (13 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from WLG |
More Information: | WLG Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | NZJ / KNZJ |
Airport Name: | MCAS El Toro |
Location: | Santa Ana, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°40'33"N by 117°43'51"W |
Operator/Owner: | United States Marine Corps |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 383 feet (117 meters) |
# of Runways: | 5 |
View all routes: | Routes from NZJ |
More Information: | NZJ Maps & Info |
Facts about Wellington International Airport (WLG):
- Wellington has a reputation for sometimes rough and turbulent landings, even in larger aircraft, due to the channelling effect of Cook Strait creating strong and gusty winds, especially in pre frontal north westerly conditions.
- In April 2006, Air New Zealand and Qantas announced that they proposed to enter into a codeshare agreement, arguing that it would be necessary in order to reduce empty seats and financial losses on trans-Tasman routes.
- The furthest airport from Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Wellington International Airport (meaning Wellington International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,406 miles (19,966 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
- The closest airport to Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) NNE of WLG.
- Since 1998 the airport has been two-thirds privately owned by Infratil, with the remaining third owned by the Wellington City Council.
- Wellington International Airport (WLG) currently has only 1 runway.
- A full-length runway extension, to accommodate long-haul aircraft such as the Boeing 747, has been previously investigated, but would require expensive land reclamation into Lyall Bay, and massive breakwater protection from Cook Strait.
- The airport, in addition to linking many New Zealand destinations with national and regional carriers, also has links to major cities in eastern Australia.
- Because of Wellington International Airport's relatively low elevation of 42 feet, planes can take off or land at Wellington International 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 South Pier contains six gates that serve regional aircraft and Air New Zealand Link turboprop aircraft.
Facts about MCAS El Toro (NZJ):
- The closest airport to MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is John Wayne Airport (SNA), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of NZJ.
- Because of MCAS El Toro's relatively low elevation of 383 feet, planes can take off or land at MCAS El Toro 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.
- During the presidency of Richard M.
- The closing of MCAS El Toro ignited a political firestorm over the eventual fate of the facility.
- The furthest airport from MCAS El Toro (NZJ) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,486 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
- Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the 4,682 acres home of Marine Corps aviation on the West Coast.
- The site is currently used as a filming location, including the test track for the United States version of BBC's Top Gear franchise.
- Those against the airport proposal were largely residents of the cities in the immediate vicinity of El Toro, such as Irvine, Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Dana Point, and Mission Viejo, where residents were alarmed at the idea of the aircraft noise.