Nonstop flight route between Wrightstown, New Jersey, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McGuire AFB (WRI), Wrightstown, New Jersey, United States and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,377 miles (or 5,434 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 McGuire AFB and Elmendorf Air Force Base, 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 McGuire AFB and Elmendorf Air Force Base. 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 McGuire AFB (WRI):

• The closest airport to McGuire AFB (WRI) is JB MDL Lakehurst (NEL), which is located only 13 miles (20 kilometers) E of WRI.
• Developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineers and scientists, SAGE monitored North American skies for possible attack by manned aircraft and missiles for 25 years.
• In addition to being known as "McGuire AFB", another name for WRI is "McGuire AFB/JB MDL McGuire".
• These squadrons flew a variety of ADC interceptors in the 1950s, starting with the F-94 Starfire in 1952, upgrading to the F-84 Thunderjet in 1953, and finally the interceptor F-86D Sabre later in 1953.
• The furthest airport from McGuire AFB (WRI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,757 miles (18,921 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Air Technical Service Command began using the base in 1943 overhauling, servicing and preparing aircraft for overseas shipment to North Africa and to the United Kingdom.
• MATS activities at the base began on 1 July 1954 with the 1611th Air Transport Wing being activated.
• The NYADS was reassigned from 26th AD on 1 April 1966 to First Air Force, until 30 September 1968 when both the sector was inactivated along with DC-01, when budget restrictions along with when technology advances allowed the Air Force to shut down many SAGE Data Centers.

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The Elmendorf AFB is a site of one of the now decommissioned FLR-9 Wullenweber-class antennas, a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT direction finding system.
• On 28 July 2010, a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base, killing all four air crew members.
• The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• On 12 November 1940, the War Department formally designated what had been popularly referred to as Elmendorf Field as Fort Richardson.