Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Coconut Island (Poruma Island), Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Coconut Island (CNC), Coconut Island (Poruma Island), Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,463 miles (or 12,010 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 Coconut Island, 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 Coconut Island. 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 Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):

• On 21 August 1954 the 407th SFW Vice Commander, Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom, died when his T-33 Shooting Star trainer crashed approximately one mile west of the Great Falls Municipal Airport.
• DC-20 was initially under the Great Falls Air Defense Sector, established on 1 March 1959.
• In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
• 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.
• 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.
• Aircraft shipments to the Soviet Union stopped in September 1945, when World War II ended, with approximately 8,000 aircraft having been processed in a 21-month period.
• Great Falls AAB was assigned to II Bomber Command, Second Air Force.
• 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.

Facts about Coconut Island (CNC):

• Coconut Island (CNC) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Coconut Island's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Coconut Island 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 closest airport to Coconut Island (CNC) is Yam Island Airport (XMY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) WNW of CNC.
• The furthest airport from Coconut Island (CNC) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,533 miles (18,561 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.