Nonstop flight route between West Yellowstone, Montana, United States and Atwater, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WYS to MER:
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- About this route
- WYS Airport Information
- MER Airport Information
- Facts about WYS
- Facts about MER
- Map of Nearest Airports to WYS
- List of Nearest Airports to WYS
- Map of Furthest Airports from WYS
- List of Furthest Airports from WYS
- Map of Nearest Airports to MER
- List of Nearest Airports to MER
- Map of Furthest Airports from MER
- List of Furthest Airports from MER
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Yellowstone Airport (WYS), West Yellowstone, Montana, United States and Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 704 miles (or 1,134 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 Yellowstone Airport and Castle Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WYS / KWYS |
| Airport Name: | Yellowstone Airport |
| Location: | West Yellowstone, Montana, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 44°41'17"N by 111°7'4"W |
| Area Served: | West Yellowstone, Montana |
| Operator/Owner: | State of Montana |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 6649 feet (2,027 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from WYS |
| More Information: | WYS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MER / KMER |
| Airport Name: | Castle Airport |
| Location: | Atwater, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°22'50"N by 120°34'5"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Merced County Department of Commerce, Aviation, and Economic Development |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 191 feet (58 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MER |
| More Information: | MER Maps & Info |
Facts about Yellowstone Airport (WYS):
- Because of Yellowstone Airport's high elevation of 6,649 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at WYS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make WYS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The closest airport to Yellowstone Airport (WYS) is Dubois Municipal Airport (DBS), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of WYS.
- Yellowstone Airport (WYS) currently has only 1 runway.
- Aerial Fire Center is located two miles north of the Yellowstone National Park Gateway community of West Yellowstone, MT, 90 miles south of Bozeman, MT and 100 miles northeast of Idaho Falls, Idaho.
- The town of West Yellowstone is located at the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park.
- The furthest airport from Yellowstone Airport (WYS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,685 miles (17,196 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
Facts about Castle Airport (MER):
- The airport is located at the former Castle Air Force Base which closed in 1995.
- Castle Air Museum is 500 yards away, displaying over 50 restored World War II, Korean War, and Cold War era aircraft.
- It was estimated that the cost to relocate the 129 RQW to Castle, to include associated military construction costs, could be recouped in seven years.
- Castle Airport (MER) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Castle Airport (MER) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,312 miles (18,204 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Castle Airport (MER) is Merced Regional Airport (MCE), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SSE of MER.
- Because of Castle Airport's relatively low elevation of 191 feet, planes can take off or land at Castle 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.
