Nonstop flight route between Tonopah, Nevada, United States and Lamu, Kenya:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD), Tonopah, Nevada, United States and Manda Airport (LAU), Lamu, Kenya would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,603 miles (or 15,454 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 Tonopah Test Range Airport and Manda Airport, 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 Tonopah Test Range Airport and Manda Airport. 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 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 closest airport to Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Tonopah Airport (TPH), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NW of XSD.
• In May 1973, when Project HAVE IDEA was initiated for joint technical and tactical evaluation of Soviet aircraft types, the tactical evaluation flights of foreign aircraft were undertaken by Detachment 1, 57th Fighter Weapons Wing.
• 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.
• In the summer of 1979, Tonopah Test Range Airport was selected to be the home of the Tactical Air Command 4450th Tactical Group.
• Near the end of the Cold War the program was abandoned and the squadron was disbanded.
• All the models had quirks.

Facts about Manda Airport (LAU):

• Manda Airport is a small civilian airport on Manda Island, serving the Lamu Archipelago in Kenya.
• Manda Airport (LAU) has 2 runways.
• Manda Airport is located in on Manda Island, Lamu District, Coast Province, in the Lamu Archipelago on the western shores of the Indian Ocean, on the Kenya coast.
• The closest airport to Manda Airport (LAU) is Kiwayu Airport (KWY), which is located 33 miles (53 kilometers) NE of LAU.
• The furthest airport from Manda Airport (LAU) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,607 miles (18,679 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• Because of Manda Airport's relatively low elevation of 20 feet, planes can take off or land at Manda 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.