Nonstop flight route between Westhampton Beach, New York, United States and Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FOK to BIF:
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- About this route
- FOK Airport Information
- BIF Airport Information
- Facts about FOK
- Facts about BIF
- Map of Nearest Airports to FOK
- List of Nearest Airports to FOK
- Map of Furthest Airports from FOK
- List of Furthest Airports from FOK
- Map of Nearest Airports to BIF
- List of Nearest Airports to BIF
- Map of Furthest Airports from BIF
- List of Furthest Airports from BIF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK), Westhampton Beach, New York, United States and Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,964 miles (or 3,161 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 Francis S. Gabreski Airport and Biggs Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | FOK / KFOK |
| Airport Name: | Francis S. Gabreski Airport |
| Location: | Westhampton Beach, New York, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 40°50'36"N by 72°37'54"W |
| Area Served: | Westhampton Beach, New York |
| Operator/Owner: | County of Suffolk |
| Airport Type: | Public / Military (ANG) |
| Elevation: | 67 feet (20 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from FOK |
| More Information: | FOK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | BIF / KBIF |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 31°50'57"N by 106°22'47"W |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 3946 feet (1,203 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from BIF |
| More Information: | BIF Maps & Info |
Facts about Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK):
- In 1975, the designation and mission changed again to "Aerospace Rescue and Recovery", later shortened to "Air Rescue" and then simply "Rescue".
- The closest airport to Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK) is Calverton Executive Airpark (CTO), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) WNW of FOK.
- Known as Suffolk County Air Force Base until 1969, then Suffolk County Airport until 1991, when it was renamed in honor of Colonel Francis S.
- Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK) has 3 runways.
- The Suffolk County Police Aviation Section bases a Law Enforcement and MEDEVAC helicopter at the airport.
- In 1955, the 23 FIG was reassigned to Presque Isle AFB, Maine and replaced by the newly activated 52nd Fighter-Interceptor Wing, which flew under various designations from Suffolk County AFB until 1969, with the 2d and 5th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons flying F-94 Starfire, F-101 Voodoo and F-102 Delta Dagger interceptors.
- Because of Francis S. Gabreski Airport's relatively low elevation of 67 feet, planes can take off or land at Francis S. Gabreski 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 furthest airport from Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,798 miles (18,988 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
Facts about Biggs Army Airfield (BIF):
- What is now Biggs Army Airfield started life in 1915 as an encampment at Fort Bliss, Texas for the 82d Field Artillery.
- In August 1953, the first B-36D arrived at Biggs, although the majority of aircraft received were the later-model B-36J-III models with a higher operational ceiling, strengthened landing gear, increased fuel capacity, armament reduced to tail guns only and reduced crew.
- In addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
- Beginning in 1950, the 97th Bomb Wing received its first B-50 Superfortress, an improved version of the B-29 capable of delivering atomic weapons.
- Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,387 miles (18,325 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The 97th Air Refueling Squadron, activated in March 1949, saw its manning increase as it received its first KB-29P in January 1950.
- The closest airport to Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is El Paso International Airport (ELP), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) S of BIF.
- With the activation of TAC, the new command assigned Headquarters, Ninth Air Force to Biggs on 28 March upon its return from Germany.
- In 1920 Camp Owen Bierne opened on the site of the current airbase as a base for airship operations but the units were soon disbanded.
