Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Eden Prairie, Minnesota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GFA to FCM:
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- About this route
- GFA Airport Information
- FCM Airport Information
- Facts about GFA
- Facts about FCM
- 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 FCM
- List of Nearest Airports to FCM
- Map of Furthest Airports from FCM
- List of Furthest Airports from FCM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Flying Cloud Airport (FCM), Eden Prairie, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 866 miles (or 1,394 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 Flying Cloud Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
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: | FCM / KFCM |
| Airport Name: | Flying Cloud Airport |
| Location: | Eden Prairie, Minnesota, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 44°49'37"N by 93°27'25"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Metropolitan Airports Commission |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 906 feet (276 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from FCM |
| More Information: | FCM Maps & Info |
Facts about Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):
- 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.
- Later, the 517th Air Transport Wing was redesginated the 1701st Air Transport Wing on 1 June 1948 when Air Transport Command was redesignated the Military Air Transport Service.
- In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
- DC-20 was initially under the Great Falls Air Defense Sector, established on 1 March 1959.
- Great Falls became the temporary home of the 582nd Air Resupply and Communications Wing on 1 May 1953 which was transferred from Mountain Home AFB, Idaho.
- On 1 July 1968, the F-101B equipped 29th FIS was inactivated and replaced by the F-106 Delta Dart equipped 71st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, which was reassigned from Richards Gebaur AFB when its ADC mission was eliminated.
- After World War II ended Great Falls AAB assumed a support mission for military personnel assigned to Alaskan military installations.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Flying Cloud Airport (FCM):
- The closest airport to Flying Cloud Airport (FCM) is Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP), which is located only 12 miles (20 kilometers) ENE of FCM.
- Flying Cloud Airport (FCM) has 3 runways.
- The furthest airport from Flying Cloud Airport (FCM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,748 miles (17,297 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Flying Cloud Airport's relatively low elevation of 906 feet, planes can take off or land at Flying Cloud 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.
