Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Kwajalein, Marshall Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA), Kwajalein, Marshall Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,359 miles (or 8,625 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 Bucholz Army Airfield, 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 Bucholz Army Airfield. 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.
• With the phaseout of the B-36 from the inventory in the late 1950s, the need for fighter escorts of SAC bombers was eliminated.
• Malmstrom Air Force Base traces its beginnings back to 1939 when World War II broke out in Europe.
• In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
• After World War II ended Great Falls AAB assumed a support mission for military personnel assigned to Alaskan military installations.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA):

• The furthest airport from Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is nearly antipodal to Bucholz Army Airfield (meaning Bucholz Army Airfield is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from RAF Ascension), and is located 12,283 miles (19,767 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
• The closest airport to Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) is Ebadon Airstrip (EBN), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) SSE of KWA.
• Because of Bucholz Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Bucholz Army Airfield 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.
• Since the entire Kwajalein Island is a military base, non-military passengers on commercial flights are transported to and from the neighboring island of Ebeye, the civilian population center of Kwajalein Atoll.
• Bucholz Army Airfield (KWA) currently has only 1 runway.
• As of 2009, Bucholz Army Airfield is still operated by the United States Army.
• Bucholz Army Airfield was initially built by the Japanese in 1943 as part of a large naval base.
• Although the Marshall Islands was officially granted independence from the United States, and became an independent republic in 1986, Kwajalein atoll is still used by the United States for missile testing and various other operations.