Nonstop flight route between Yakima, Washington, United States and Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT), Yakima, Washington, United States and Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,615 miles (or 2,598 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 relatively short distance between Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) and Ladd Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT):

• Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,789 miles (17,363 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The closest airport to Vagabond Army Heliport (closed to fixed-wing aircraft) (FCT) is Yakima Air Terminal (YKM), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) SSW of FCT.

Facts about Ladd Army Airfield (FBK):

• The furthest airport from Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,286 miles (16,554 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of FBK.
• Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) currently has only 1 runway.
• Ice fog became a problem for airplanes landing at the field.
• Ladd was not exclusively an Air Force site.
• Because of Ladd Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 454 feet, planes can take off or land at Ladd Army Airfield 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 "Ladd Army Airfield", another name for FBK is "(Ladd Air Force Base)".
• Alaska's transportation infrastructure at the time was so limited and the problem of military supply so acute, it also made sense to concentrate the bases along existing supply lines near Anchorage and Fairbanks.
• Weather and Testing Units