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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Gold Coast Airport (OOL), Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,861 miles (or 12,651 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 Gold Coast 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 Gold Coast 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):

• Great Falls was reassigned to the Central Air Defense Force at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base in 1953.
• Malmstrom Air Force Base traces its beginnings back to 1939 when World War II broke out in Europe.
• 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".
• DC-20 was initially under the Great Falls Air Defense Sector, established on 1 March 1959.
• By 1954, several aircraft control and warning squadrons had been formed at the base.
• In late 1962 missiles assigned to 341st would play a major role in the Cuban Missile Crisis.
• 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.

Facts about Gold Coast Airport (OOL):

• Gold Coast Airport handled 5,261,773 passengers last year.
• On 13 August 2012 Qantas announced that it will return to Gold Coast, flying from Sydney three times daily using a Boeing 737-800.
• By 2009 Jetstar began flying at least twice daily to the Japanese cities of Tokyo and Osaka.
• The furthest airport from Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is La Palma Airport (SPC), which is located 11,905 miles (19,159 kilometers) away in La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
• Because of Gold Coast Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Gold Coast 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.
• Gold Coast Airport (OOL) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Gold Coast Airport (OOL) is Ballina Byron Gateway Airport (BNK), which is located 46 miles (75 kilometers) S of OOL.
• For the 2010–11 financial year, Gold Coast Airport was the sixth busiest airport in Australia in terms of passengers and eighth in aircraftmovements.
• In 1990 the airport welcomed its first international charter service from New Zealand, and by 1999 Air New Zealand low-cost subsidiary Freedom Air started scheduled no-frills service from Hamilton, New Zealand with Boeing 737s.
• Tiger Airways Australia flights previously operated from a low cost terminal with basic amenities, located approximately 200 m from the main terminal building.
• Until 1999 the airport was known as Coolangatta Airport.