Nonstop flight route between Datong, Shanxi, China and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Datong Yungang Airport (DAT), Datong, Shanxi, China and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,067 miles (or 9,764 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 Datong Yungang 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 Datong Yungang 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 Datong Yungang Airport (DAT):

• The furthest airport from Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) is Antoine de Saint Exupéry Airport (OES), which is nearly antipodal to Datong Yungang Airport (meaning Datong Yungang Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Antoine de Saint Exupéry Airport), and is located 12,345 miles (19,868 kilometers) away in San Antonio Oeste, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) is Zhangjiakou Ningyuan Airport (ZQZ), which is located 89 miles (144 kilometers) ENE of DAT.
• Datong Yungang Airport handled 117,423 passengers last year.
• Datong Yungang Airport (DAT) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Datong Yungang Airport", other names for DAT include "大同云冈机场" and "Dàtóng Yúngāng Jīchǎng".

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• 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.
• During the Cold War, GFAFB was a major installation of the Strategic Air Command, with B-52 bombers, KC-135 tankers, and Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles.
• 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.
• During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
• On 1 September 1958, the Strategic Air Command established the 4133d Strategic Wing at Grand Forks as part of its plan to disperse its B-52 heavy bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike.
• Due to the continuance of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, GFAFB was originally an Air Defense Command fighter-interceptor air base.
• Opened 57 years ago in early 1957, the base's current host unit is the 319th Air Base Wing assigned to the Expeditionary Center of the Air Mobility Command.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• On 3 November 1967, the Department of Defense revealed that GFAFB was one of 10 initial locations to host a Sentinel Anti-Ballistic Missile site.