Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Aachen, Germany:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GFA to AAH:
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- About this route
- GFA Airport Information
- AAH Airport Information
- Facts about GFA
- Facts about AAH
- Map of Nearest Airports to GFA
- List of Nearest Airports to GFA
- Map of Furthest Airports from GFA
- List of Furthest Airports from GFA
- Map of Nearest Airports to AAH
- List of Nearest Airports to AAH
- Map of Furthest Airports from AAH
- List of Furthest Airports from AAH
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), Aachen, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,695 miles (or 7,556 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 Malmstrom Air Force Base and Merzbrück Airfield, 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 Malmstrom Air Force Base and Merzbrück Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GFA / KGFA |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Great Falls, Montana, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°30'16"N by 111°11'13"W |
View all routes: | Routes from GFA |
More Information: | GFA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AAH / EDKA |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Aachen, Germany |
GPS Coordinates: | 50°49'23"N by 6°11'11"E |
Area Served: | Aachen, Germany |
Operator/Owner: | Flugplatz Aachen-Merzbrück GmbH |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 623 feet (190 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from AAH |
More Information: | AAH Maps & Info |
Facts about Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):
- DC-20 was initially under the Great Falls Air Defense Sector, established on 1 March 1959.
- The furthest airport from Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,495 miles (16,891 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- In 1957, under the control of the 801st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, the Malmstrom AFB radar station became operational with AN/FPS-20 search and AN/FPS-6 height-finder radars.
- Tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union increased dramatically when the Soviet Union closed all land travel between the western occupation sectors of Germany and the American, French and British sectors of Berlin.
- The closest airport to Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA) is Great Falls International Airport (GTF), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) W of GFA.
- In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
- On 18 December 1953, Great Falls AFB was transferred from Military Air Transport Service to Strategic Air Command, although MATS units remained at the base for several years.
- At Great Falls, P-39 Airacobras, C-47 Skytrains, B-25 Mitchells, and A-20 Havocs aircraft.
Facts about Merzbrück Airfield (AAH):
- The closest airport to Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) is NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) NNW of AAH.
- The furthest airport from Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,937 miles (19,210 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- The airport was built about 1932 as a grass airfield, and throughout the 1930s was used by small light aircraft.
- Because of Merzbrück Airfield's relatively low elevation of 623 feet, planes can take off or land at Merzbrück 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.
- There is no scheduled traffic at the airfield.
- With the outbreak of World War II, Merzbrück was used by the Luftwaffe, with IV./LG 1 and I./St.G.
- In addition to being known as "Merzbrück Airfield", another name for AAH is "Flugplatz Merzbrück".
- Merzbrück Airfield (AAH) currently has only 1 runway.
- In January 1945, as a result of the Western Allied invasion of Germany, United States Army forces moved though the Aachen area and captured Merzbrück Airport about 29 January.