Nonstop flight route between Great Falls, Montana, United States and Vernal, Utah, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GFA to VEL:
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- About this route
- GFA Airport Information
- VEL Airport Information
- Facts about GFA
- Facts about VEL
- 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 VEL
- List of Nearest Airports to VEL
- Map of Furthest Airports from VEL
- List of Furthest Airports from VEL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA), Great Falls, Montana, United States and Vernal Regional Airport (VEL), Vernal, Utah, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 495 miles (or 797 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 Vernal Regional 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: | VEL / KVEL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Vernal, Utah, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 40°26'26"N by 109°30'36"W |
| Area Served: | Vernal, Utah |
| Operator/Owner: | Uintah County & Vernal City |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5278 feet (1,609 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from VEL |
| More Information: | VEL Maps & Info |
Facts about Malmstrom Air Force Base (GFA):
- Tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union increased dramatically when the Soviet Union closed all land travel between the western occupation sectors of Germany and the American, French and British sectors of Berlin.
- Great Falls played a major aerial defense role in North American air defense mission.
- Upon completion of the B-17 training program, in October 1943, Great Falls Army Air Base was transferred to the Air Transport Command and units from Gore Field were transferred to the base.
- Great Falls was reassigned to the Central Air Defense Force at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base in 1953.
- Following World War II, Great Falls Army Air Base played an important role in US defense during the Cold War era.
- 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.
- On 18 December 1953, Great Falls AFB was transferred from Military Air Transport Service to Strategic Air Command, although MATS units remained at the base for several years.
- 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.
- The 801st Radar Squadron was inactivated on 31 December 1969 due to budget reductions.
- In addition to being known as "Malmstrom Air Force Base", another name for GFA is "Malmstrom AFB".
Facts about Vernal Regional Airport (VEL):
- Vernal Regional Airport (VEL) has 2 runways.
- In addition to being known as "Vernal Regional Airport", another name for VEL is "Vernal - Uintah County Airport".
- Because of Vernal Regional Airport's high elevation of 5,278 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at VEL. Combined with a high temperature, this could make VEL a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Air Midwest began flights to Salt Lake City International Airport on 2 July 2006, replacing Salmon Air.
- The furthest airport from Vernal Regional Airport (VEL) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,947 miles (17,617 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The closest airport to Vernal Regional Airport (VEL) is Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS), which is located 83 miles (134 kilometers) NNE of VEL.
