Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Caloundra, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Caloundra Airport (CUD), Caloundra, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,815 miles (or 12,577 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 Caloundra Airport, 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 Caloundra Airport. 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):

• 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 1959 a SAGE data center was established at Malmstrom.
• Z-147 was completely replaced by a new ARSR-4 JSS site on Bootlegger Ridge, about 14 miles northeast of Great Falls 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.
• 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.
• Great Falls was reassigned to the Central Air Defense Force at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base in 1953.
• This included one of the greatest technology transfers in the history of the world.
• With the phaseout of the B-36 from the inventory in the late 1950s, the need for fighter escorts of SAC bombers was eliminated.
• In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".

Facts about Caloundra Airport (CUD):

• Caloundra airport has two sealed runways, 795 m × 18 m.
• On 19 August 2010, Sunshine Coast council voted to retain Caloundra Airport in the current location.
• Early aircraft operations in the Caloundra area used the sandy beaches for takeoffs and landings, however as early as 1927, community groups were calling for the construction of an airport.
• The closest airport to Caloundra Airport (CUD) is Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) N of CUD.
• The airport is home to 19 businesses, providing 220 jobs for the local area.
• Because of Caloundra Airport's relatively low elevation of 125 feet, planes can take off or land at Caloundra 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 Caloundra Airport (CUD) is La Palma Airport (SPC), which is located 11,864 miles (19,093 kilometers) away in La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
• Caloundra Airport (CUD) has 2 runways.