Nonstop flight route between Bloomington, Illinois, United States and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI), Bloomington, Illinois, United States and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 665 miles (or 1,071 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 Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal and Grand Forks Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI):

• The furthest airport from Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,045 miles (17,775 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Nothing survives of the old airport, but a historic marker near the north end of Constitution Trail commemorates the site.
• Because of Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal's relatively low elevation of 871 feet, planes can take off or land at Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal 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.
• The Prairie Aviation Museum is on the west side of the airport.
• Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) has 2 runways.
• The airport dates to the spring of 1927 when farmer Herman Will opened a 70-plus-acre tract in rural Normal Township.
• The closest airport to Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) is General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) WNW of BMI.
• Despite the efforts of local aviation enthusiasts and the business community, attempts to establish long-term passenger service at the Normal field ended in failure.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (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.
• On 1 November 1964, 321st Strategic Missile Wing was organized as the Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile wing at GFAFB, the first in SAC.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• Survey teams selected sites in flat wheatlands close to the Canada-Minnesota border, north-northwest of Grand Forks.
• 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 the interceptor squadrons, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center was established at Grand Forks in 1958.
• 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.