Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Kieta, Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Kieta/Aropa Airport (KIE), Kieta, Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,683 miles (or 10,756 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 Kieta/Aropa 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 Kieta/Aropa 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Construction of the wing's first launch facility began in March 1961 and was completed in December.
• The base's runway was closed on 31 December 1996 for aircraft operations.
• 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".
• Originally named Great Falls Army Air Base, later Great Falls Air Force Base, the facility was renamed Malmstrom Air Force Base on 1 October 1955 in honor of Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom.
• After World War II ended Great Falls AAB assumed a support mission for military personnel assigned to Alaskan military installations.
• Z-147 was completely replaced by a new ARSR-4 JSS site on Bootlegger Ridge, about 14 miles northeast of Great Falls AFB.

Facts about Kieta/Aropa Airport (KIE):

• Nowadays the airfield is disused and overgrown with bush.
• Kieta/Aropa Airport (KIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Kieta/Aropa Airport (KIE) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,844 miles (19,061 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
• Because of Kieta/Aropa Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Kieta/Aropa 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.
• After World War II the airport became one of Bougainville's main airports.
• In addition to being known as "Kieta/Aropa Airport", another name for KIE is "AYIQ".
• The closest airport to Kieta/Aropa Airport (KIE) is Balalae Airport (BAS), which is located 49 miles (79 kilometers) SSE of KIE.
• Kieta Airport is a closed airport in Kieta, Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea.