Nonstop flight route between Ahe, French Polynesia and Minot, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ahe Airport (AHE), Ahe, French Polynesia and Minot Air Force Base (MIB), Minot, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,140 miles (or 8,273 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 Ahe Airport and Minot 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 Ahe Airport and Minot Air Force Base. 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 Ahe Airport (AHE):

• The closest airport to Ahe Airport (AHE) is Manihi Airport (XMH), which is located only 12 miles (20 kilometers) E of AHE.
• Ahe Airport (AHE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Ahe Airport (AHE) is Khartoum International Airport (KRT), which is nearly antipodal to Ahe Airport (meaning Ahe Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Khartoum International Airport), and is located 12,324 miles (19,833 kilometers) away in Khartoum, Sudan.
• Because of Ahe Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Ahe 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.

Facts about Minot Air Force Base (MIB):

• In 1961, the Air Force selected the land around Minot for a new Minuteman I ICBM complex.
• Following the Iran hostage crisis of 1979-81, SAC tasked the former 57th Air Division to organize the Strategic Projection Force.
• The furthest airport from Minot Air Force Base (MIB) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,320 miles (16,609 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• A Semi Automatic Ground Environment facility was built and activated in June 1961.
• On 1 February 1963, SAC, as part of a conversion to unit designations with historical significance, activated the 450th Bombardment Wing at Minot and the 720th Bombardment Squadron, along with the formation of the 450th Airborne Missile Maintenance Squadron, 450th Armament & Electronics Maintenance Squadron, 450th Field Maintenance Squadron, and the 450th Organizational Maintenance Squadron simultaneously.
• In addition to being known as "Minot Air Force Base", another name for MIB is "Minot AFB".
• Originally opened in 1957 as an Air Defense Command base, Minot AFB became a major Strategic Air Command base in the early 1960s, with both nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles and manned bombers and aerial refueling aircraft.
• The closest airport to Minot Air Force Base (MIB) is Minot International Airport (MOT), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) SSE of MIB.
• The initial USAF host unit was the Air Defense Command 32d Air Base Group, activating on 8 February 1957.