Nonstop flight route between Dresden, Germany and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Dresden Airport (DRS), Dresden, Germany and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,474 miles (or 7,200 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 Dresden 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 Dresden 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 Dresden Airport (DRS):

• The airport is served by an adjacent junction on the A4 Autobahn, which by-passes central Dresden on its route from Aachen, on the Dutch border, to Görlitz, on the Polish border.
• In addition to being known as "Dresden Airport", another name for DRS is "Flughafen Dresden".
• Dresden Airport (DRS) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport consists of one modern passenger terminal building that features several shops, restaurants and service agencies as well as seven aircraft parking positions equipped with jet bridges and some additional apron stands for mid-sized aircraft such as the Airbus A320.
• The furthest airport from Dresden Airport (DRS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,742 miles (18,897 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Dresden Airport (DRS) is Leipzig–Altenburg Airport (AOC), which is located 56 miles (90 kilometers) W of DRS.
• Though planned as a commercial airport, its importance to the military increased dramatically during the following years in the Third Reich.
• Because of Dresden Airport's relatively low elevation of 754 feet, planes can take off or land at Dresden 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.
• The airport was opened to commercial traffic on 11 July 1935.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• In March 1995, the 1995 Base Realignment and Closure Commission selected the 321st Strategic Missile Wing for inactivation.
• The 4133d SW was redesignated as the 319th Bombardment Wing on 1 February 1963 in a name-only redesigation and was assigned to SAC's Second Air Force, 810th Strategic Aerospace Division.
• 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 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.
• Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
• On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
• 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.