Nonstop flight route between Hancock, Michigan, United States and Cold Bay, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Houghton County Memorial Airport (CMX), Hancock, Michigan, United States and Cold Bay Airport (CDB), Cold Bay, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,106 miles (or 4,999 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 Houghton County Memorial Airport and Cold Bay Airport, 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 Houghton County Memorial Airport and Cold Bay Airport. 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 Houghton County Memorial Airport (CMX):

• According to the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 25,354 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 24,826 in 2009, and 21,186 in 2010.
• The closest airport to Houghton County Memorial Airport (CMX) is Sawyer International Airport (MQT), which is located 76 miles (123 kilometers) SE of CMX.
• Houghton County Memorial Airport (CMX) has 2 runways.
• For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2011, the airport had 16,054 aircraft operations, an average of 44 per day:of these, 68% were general aviation, 19% scheduled commercial, 13% air taxi and less than 1% military.
• The furthest airport from Houghton County Memorial Airport (CMX) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,907 miles (17,554 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Cold Bay Airport (CDB):

• The airport was constructed during World War II as Fort Randall Army Airfield during the secret military buildup of the Territory of Alaska that began in 1941.
• According to Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 9,105 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 8,968 enplanements in 2009, and 9,261 in 2010.
• It was redesignated from Army Air Base to an Air Force Base on 28 March 1948 along with seven other Army Air Bases in Alaska.
• On October 30, 2013 a Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300 on the flight from Tokyo to San Francisco landed on the airport due to an engine shut-down.
• Cold Bay Airport (CDB) has 2 runways.
• A myth describes Cold Bay Airport as an alternate landing site for Space Shuttles, but the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has stated that it was never so designated, and it was not within the entry crossrange capability of Space Shuttles.
• The closest airport to Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is King Cove Airport (KVC), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) ESE of CDB.
• The furthest airport from Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,968 miles (17,652 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• The 5042d ABS was discontinued on 1 January 1950 per AAC General Order Number 198, dated 13 December 1949, due to budget restrictions.
• Because of Cold Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 102 feet, planes can take off or land at Cold Bay 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.
• In addition to being known as "Cold Bay Airport", other names for CDB include "Cold Bay Air Force Station" and "Fort Randall Army Airfield".