Nonstop flight route between Winter Haven, Florida, United States and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF), Winter Haven, Florida, United States and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,610 miles (or 2,592 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 Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF):

• The closest airport to Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) is Bartow Municipal Airport (BOW), which is located only 8 miles (14 kilometers) SSW of GIF.
• The furthest airport from Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,482 miles (18,478 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport's relatively low elevation of 145 feet, planes can take off or land at Winter Haven's Gilbert 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.
• Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) has 2 runways.
• During World War II, Gilbert Field was an auxiliary airfield for the Lakeland School of Aeronautics at the Lakeland Lodwick Field airport.
• In addition to being known as "Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport", another name for GIF is "Winter Haven Municipal Airport".
• For the 12-month period ending November 17, 2009, the airport had 60,000 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 164 per day.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• The furthest airport from Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,504 miles (16,904 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
• The closest airport to Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR) is Grand Forks International Airport (GFK), which is located only 10 miles (17 kilometers) E of RDR.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• Following the departure of the last B-1B aircraft in 1994, the base transferred to the new Air Mobility Command and the 319th Bomb Wing was redesignated as the 319th Air Refueling Wing.
• On 26 May 1972, President Nixon and Soviet general secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the ABM Treaty, which limited each nation to one site to protect strategic forces and one site to protect the "National Command Authority." With work about 85 percent complete at Grand Forks, the United States chose to finish construction at the North Dakota site.
• On 1 September 1958, the Strategic Air Command established the 4133d Strategic Wing at Grand Forks as part of its plan to disperse its B-52 heavy bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike.
• On 3 November 1967, the Department of Defense revealed that GFAFB was one of 10 initial locations to host a Sentinel Anti-Ballistic Missile site.
• Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.