Nonstop flight route between Atka, Alaska, United States and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Atka Airport (AKB), Atka, Alaska, United States and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,255 miles (or 5,238 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 Atka Airport and Grand Forks 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 Atka Airport and Grand Forks 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 Atka Airport (AKB):

• The closest airport to Atka Airport (AKB) is Adak Airport (ADK), which is located 106 miles (171 kilometers) WSW of AKB.
• In addition to being known as "Atka Airport", another name for AKB is "AKA".
• Atka Airport is a state owned, public use airport located two nautical miles north of the central business district of Atka, a city on Atka Island in the U.S.
• The furthest airport from Atka Airport (AKB) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 11,025 miles (17,743 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• Because of Atka Airport's relatively low elevation of 57 feet, planes can take off or land at Atka 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.
• Atka Airport (AKB) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• 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.
• In 1971, the 18th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was inactivated and the 460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron replaced the unit.
• 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.
• On 26 May 1972, President Nixon and Soviet general secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the ABM Treaty, which limited each nation to one site to protect strategic forces and one site to protect the "National Command Authority." With work about 85 percent complete at Grand Forks, the United States chose to finish construction at the North Dakota site.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• With the restructuring of the Air Force and the disestablishment of SAC in 1992, the wing transferred to Air Combat Command, then came under Air Force Space Command in 1993.
• 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.