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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) (DIO), Diomede, Alaska, United States and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,775 miles (or 4,466 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 Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) 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 Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) 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 Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) (DIO):

• There were 43 households out of which 37.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 20.9% were married couples living together, 32.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families.
• The Little Diomede island is composed of Cretaceous age granite or quartz monzonite.
• Because of Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2)'s relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) 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 first non-native to reach the Diomede Islands was a Russian explorer Semyon Dezhnev in 1648.
• The first square building in the island was a small Catholic church, which was planned by Father Bellarmine Lafortune in 1935 and built by Father Thomas Cunningham during his residency in the island between 1936 and 1947.
• After the Cold War ended in the early 1990s, an interest of reuniting with families across the Bering Strait revived.
• Frozen ground and lack of soil on the rocky island also prevents digging graves, but rocks are piled on top of the burial sites instead.
• Water for winter use is drawn from a mountain spring, then treated and stored in 434,000-U.S.-gallon storage tanks.
• The current location of the city, which is believed to be at least 3,000 years old by some archaeologists, was originally a spring hunting campsite and the early explorers from the west found the Iñupiat at Diomede had an advanced culture including their elaborate whale hunting ceremonies.
• Little Diomede Island is located about 25 miles west from the mainland, in the middle of the Bering Strait.
• The closest airport to Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) (DIO) is Wales Airport (WAA), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) ESE of DIO.
• The furthest airport from Diomede Heliport (FAA: DM2) (DIO) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,411 miles (16,755 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.
• According to traveler John Muir, on his visit to Diomede Islands in 1880s they found the natives eager to trade away everything they had.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• 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.
• In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
• 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.
• 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 February 1993, ACC dropped the 319th Bomb Wing's primary nuclear mission and gave the wing the primary mission of B-1B conventional bombardment operations.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".