Nonstop flight route between Mzuzu, Malawi and Tonopah, Nevada, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mzuzu Airport (ZZU), Mzuzu, Malawi and Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD), Tonopah, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,874 miles (or 15,890 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 Mzuzu Airport and Tonopah Test Range 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 Mzuzu Airport and Tonopah Test Range 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 Mzuzu Airport (ZZU):

• Because of Mzuzu Airport's high elevation of 4,115 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at ZZU. Combined with a high temperature, this could make ZZU a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Mzuzu Airport (ZZU) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,606 miles (18,679 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• Mzuzu Airport (ZZU) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Mzuzu Airport (ZZU) is Chelinda Airport (CEH), which is located 63 miles (101 kilometers) NNW of ZZU.

Facts about Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD):

• In 1997, the United States purchased 21 Moldovan aircraft for evaluation and analysis, under the Cooperative Threat Reduction accord.
• 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.
• Several locations were considered, Michael Army Airfield at the Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah, and the Gila Bend Air Force Auxiliary Field on the Goldwater Range in Arizona.
• 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.
• The Tonopah Range Airport first opened in 1957, supporting operations on the Test Range itself, which was used for United States Atomic Energy Commission ) funded weapon programs.
• In 2006, the Constant Peg program was declassified and the USAF held a series of press conferences about the former top secret US MiGs.
• The MiG-21 posed a major threat to Israeli Air Defenses as well as to American pilots over the skies of North Vietnam.
• The closest airport to Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Tonopah Airport (TPH), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NW of XSD.