Nonstop flight route between Woensdrecht, Netherlands and Santa Ana, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Woensdrecht Air Base (WOE), Woensdrecht, Netherlands and MCAS El Toro (NZJ), Santa Ana, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,589 miles (or 8,995 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 Woensdrecht Air Base 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 Woensdrecht Air Base and MCAS El Toro. 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 Woensdrecht Air Base (WOE):

• The furthest airport from Woensdrecht Air Base (WOE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,908 miles (19,164 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport was founded in 1934 as a glider and training airfield for the Royal Dutch Air Force.
• Woensdrecht Air Base (WOE) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Woensdrecht Air Base", another name for WOE is "(Advanced Landing Ground B-79)".
• Because of Woensdrecht Air Base's relatively low elevation of 63 feet, planes can take off or land at Woensdrecht Air 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.
• The airport currently has one runway, 07/25, which is 2,440 meters long.
• The closest airport to Woensdrecht Air Base (WOE) is Antwerp International Airport (ANR), which is located only 19 miles (30 kilometers) SSE of WOE.

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.
• In 1950, El Toro was selected as a permanent Master Jet Station for the Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific.
• MCAS El Toro (NZJ) has 5 runways.
• The base headquarters was established on November 4, 1942 and the first landing occurred in late November when a Major Micheal Carmichael, flying from Camp Kearny, was forced to make an emergency landing among the construction equipment.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Before the site could be developed for civilian use, the Department of the Navy was required to perform environmental remediation to clean up contaminated soil on the site.