Nonstop flight route between Waterville, Maine, United States and Tonopah, Nevada, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WVL to XSD:
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- About this route
- WVL Airport Information
- XSD Airport Information
- Facts about WVL
- Facts about XSD
- Map of Nearest Airports to WVL
- List of Nearest Airports to WVL
- Map of Furthest Airports from WVL
- List of Furthest Airports from WVL
- Map of Nearest Airports to XSD
- List of Nearest Airports to XSD
- Map of Furthest Airports from XSD
- List of Furthest Airports from XSD
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport (WVL), Waterville, Maine, United States and Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD), Tonopah, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,459 miles (or 3,957 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 Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport and Tonopah Test Range Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WVL / KWVL |
| Airport Name: | Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport |
| Location: | Waterville, Maine, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 44°31'59"N by 69°40'32"W |
| Operator/Owner: | City of Waterville |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 333 feet (101 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from WVL |
| More Information: | WVL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | XSD / KTNX |
| Airport Name: | Tonopah Test Range Airport |
| Location: | Tonopah, Nevada, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°47'40"N by 116°46'42"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from XSD |
| More Information: | XSD Maps & Info |
Facts about Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport (WVL):
- Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport (WVL) has 2 runways.
- Because of Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport's relatively low elevation of 333 feet, planes can take off or land at Waterville Robert Lafleur 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 closest airport to Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport (WVL) is Central Maine Airport of Norridgewock (OWK), which is located only 16 miles (25 kilometers) NW of WVL.
- The furthest airport from Waterville Robert Lafleur Airport (WVL) is Albany Airport (ALH), which is located 11,665 miles (18,773 kilometers) away in Albany, Western Australia, Australia.
Facts about Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD):
- On 12 August 1968, the IDF obtained two Syrian Air Force MiG-17F fighters that had gotten lost during a training flight and landed inadvertently at Besert Landing Field, Israel.
- The furthest airport from Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,207 miles (18,036 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- Foreign military sales of United States fighter aircraft to Indonesia and Egypt in the mid-1970s to replace the Soviet fighter aircraft allowed these nations to clandestinely transfer un-needed MiG-21 ultra modern MiG-23s aircraft to the United States for evaluation.
- Near the end of the Cold War the program was abandoned and the squadron was disbanded.
- Pakistan was the first and largest customer of the J-6 receiving nearly 300 aircraft, mostly of the J-6C variety.
- In 1980 the 4477th TEF was re-designated as the 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron and the operation was renamed again to Constant Peg.
- The closest airport to Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Tonopah Airport (TPH), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NW of XSD.
- After the 4477th TES was inactivated, the remaining assets were reconstituted as a detachment of the 57th Fighter Wing at Nellis AFB.
- What was learned during these projects prompted the US Navy to commence Top Gun exercises first at NAS Miramar, California and then NAS Fallon, Nevada.
