Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BGS to EDF:
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- About this route
- BGS Airport Information
- EDF Airport Information
- Facts about BGS
- Facts about EDF
- Map of Nearest Airports to BGS
- List of Nearest Airports to BGS
- Map of Furthest Airports from BGS
- List of Furthest Airports from BGS
- Map of Nearest Airports to EDF
- List of Nearest Airports to EDF
- Map of Furthest Airports from EDF
- List of Furthest Airports from EDF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,931 miles (or 4,717 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield 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:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BGS / |
Airport Name: | Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield |
Location: | Big Spring, Texas, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°13'5"N by 101°31'17"W |
View all routes: | Routes from BGS |
More Information: | BGS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | EDF / PAED |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Anchorage, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 61°15'5"N by 149°48'23"W |
View all routes: | Routes from EDF |
More Information: | EDF Maps & Info |
Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):
- Webb Air Force Base, previously named Big Spring Air Force Base, was a United States Air Force facility of the Air Training Command that operated from 1951 to 1977 in west Texas within the current city limits of Big Spring.
- The airfield and flight line was converted to an uncontrolled/UNICOM-only general aviation airport renamed Big Spring McMahon-Wrinkle Airport, serving the City of Big Spring.
- The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Instruction of the first class began in April 1952.
- The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.
- The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
- In 1968, ATC established a single phase-pilot training squadron concept at Webb.
Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):
- On 22 September 1995, a Boeing E-3 Sentry Airborne early warning and control aircraft with 22 USAF personnel and two Canadian air crew members crashed after ingesting a flock of Canada Geese, killing all on board.
- The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
- The uncertain world situation in late 1940s and early 1950s caused a major buildup of air defense forces in Alaska.
- 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.
- The adjacent facilities were officially combined by the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Commission.
- 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.