Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RDR to BIF:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- RDR Airport Information
- BIF Airport Information
- Facts about RDR
- Facts about BIF
- Map of Nearest Airports to RDR
- List of Nearest Airports to RDR
- Map of Furthest Airports from RDR
- List of Furthest Airports from RDR
- Map of Nearest Airports to BIF
- List of Nearest Airports to BIF
- Map of Furthest Airports from BIF
- List of Furthest Airports from BIF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,209 miles (or 1,945 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 Grand Forks Air Force Base and Biggs Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RDR / KRDR |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°57'39"N by 97°24'3"W |
View all routes: | Routes from RDR |
More Information: | RDR Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BIF / KBIF |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 31°50'57"N by 106°22'47"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 3946 feet (1,203 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BIF |
More Information: | BIF Maps & Info |
Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):
- In May 2005, DoD's 2005 BRAC recommended GFAFB for realignment.
- The closest airport to Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR) is Grand Forks International Airport (GFK), which is located only 10 miles (17 kilometers) E of RDR.
- The furthest airport from Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,504 miles (16,904 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.
- The DC-11 SAGE blockhouse was later the headquarters of the SAC 321st Strategic Missile Wing.
- In 1973, the 319th Bomb Wing acquired the AGM-69 Short Range Attack Missile, replacing the older AGM-28 Hound Dog air-to-ground missile aboard its B-52H aircraft.
- On 3 September 1974, the SAFSCOM Site Activation Team was relieved by the U.S.
- In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
- The 4133d SW was redesignated as the 319th Bombardment Wing on 1 February 1963 in a name-only redesigation and was assigned to SAC's Second Air Force, 810th Strategic Aerospace Division.
Facts about Biggs Army Airfield (BIF):
- In addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
- Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) currently has only 1 runway.
- With World War II imminent, a massive construction effort was begun at Biggs Army Airfield between 1942–1945.
- Prior to the takeover of Biggs by SAC in October 1948, it had previously moved the B-29 Superfortress-equipped 97th Bombardment Group to the base in May.
- Enough construction was completed by the late summer of 1942, to allow the 303d Bombardment Group to began training with B-17Fs under Second Air Force on 7 August.
- The furthest airport from Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,387 miles (18,325 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The closest airport to Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is El Paso International Airport (ELP), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) S of BIF.
- Beginning in 1950, the 97th Bomb Wing received its first B-50 Superfortress, an improved version of the B-29 capable of delivering atomic weapons.
- In August 1953, the first B-36D arrived at Biggs, although the majority of aircraft received were the later-model B-36J-III models with a higher operational ceiling, strengthened landing gear, increased fuel capacity, armament reduced to tail guns only and reduced crew.
- Between the two World Wars, Biggs served as a refueling stop for transient aircraft.