Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE), West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,815 miles (or 2,922 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 Malmstrom Air Force Base and Columbia Metropolitan Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):

• By 1954, several aircraft control and warning squadrons had been formed at the base.
• MATS reopened the C-54 Flight Training School as the 1272 Medium Transition Training Unit in May 1950, one month before the Korean War began.
• On 23 December 1959, the Air Force Ballistic Missile Committee approved the selection of Malmstrom AFB to host the first Minuteman ICBM base.
• 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 addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
• 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.
• Z-147 was completely replaced by a new ARSR-4 JSS site on Bootlegger Ridge, about 14 miles northeast of Great Falls AFB.
• In November 1942, a survey team evaluated an area near the Green Mill Dance Club and Rainbow Dam Road approximately six miles east of Great Falls.

Facts about Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE):

• Training at Columbia Army Air Base was phased down during the summer of 1945.
• Eastern Airlines provided service to Charlotte, Washington, and New York.
• Because of Columbia Metropolitan Airport's relatively low elevation of 236 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Metropolitan 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.
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport handled 1,027,699 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport (CUB), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) ENE of CAE.
• In 1941 the airport came under formal military control and an immediate program began to turn the civil airport into a military airfield.
• The furthest airport from Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,508 miles (18,520 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) has 2 runways.
• In August 1996, the UPS-owned cargo airline opened an $80 million southeastern regional hub at the airport, one of six regional hubs throughout the United States.