Nonstop flight route between Bole, Xinjiang, China and Great Falls, Montana, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bole Alashankou Airport (BPL), Bole, Xinjiang, China and Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,000 miles (or 9,657 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 Bole Alashankou Airport and Malmstrom 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 Bole Alashankou Airport and Malmstrom 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 Bole Alashankou Airport (BPL):

• The closest airport to Bole Alashankou Airport (BPL) is Yining Airport (YIN), which is located 81 miles (130 kilometers) SW of BPL.
• The furthest airport from Bole Alashankou Airport (BPL) is Gamboa Airport (WCA), which is located 11,234 miles (18,080 kilometers) away in Castro, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Bole Alashankou Airport", other names for BPL include "博乐阿拉山口机场" and "Bólè Ālāshānkǒu Jīchǎng".

Facts about Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):

• This included one of the greatest technology transfers in the history of the world.
• In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
• With the phaseout of the B-36 from the inventory in the late 1950s, the need for fighter escorts of SAC bombers was eliminated.
• Following World War II, Great Falls Army Air Base played an important role in US defense during the Cold War era.
• Great Falls was reassigned to the Central Air Defense Force at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base in 1953.
• The closest airport to Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA) is Great Falls International Airport (GTF), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) W of GFA.
• In 1957, under the control of the 801st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, the Malmstrom AFB radar station became operational with AN/FPS-20 search and AN/FPS-6 height-finder radars.
• The furthest airport from Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,495 miles (16,891 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.