Nonstop flight route between Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States and Bellingham, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR), Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States and Bellingham International Airport (BLI), Bellingham, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,766 miles (or 2,842 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 Kincheloe Air Force Base and Bellingham International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR):

• On 2 February 1959, Strategic Air Command established the 4239th Strategic Wing at Kincheloe AFB, Michigan as part of SAC's plan to disburse its B-52 Stratofortress 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.
• The closest airport to Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR) is Chippewa County International Airport (CIU), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of INR.
• On 16 February 1953, the first operational ADC unit, the 534th Air Defense Group was activated at Kinross AFB.
• The furthest airport from Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,103 miles (17,869 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• During World War II, the Soo Locks were considered vital to the war efforts.
• The 438th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was upgraded again to the F-106 Delta Dart interceptor in June 1960, one of the first ADC squadrons to receive the new interceptor.
• Kinross was considered a vital Air Defense Command base, an alert-status military base equipped with interceptors ready 24/7 to respond to unknown aircraft picked up by Ground Control Radar stations in the Great Lakes region.
• The 4239th Strategic Wing was inactivated as the 449th Bombardment Wing was activated on 15 Nov 1962 and organized on 1 February 1963, assigned to SAC's Second Air Force, 40th Air Division.

Facts about Bellingham International Airport (BLI):

• Because of Bellingham International Airport's relatively low elevation of 170 feet, planes can take off or land at Bellingham International 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.
• In addition to being known as "Bellingham International Airport", another name for BLI is "(Bellingham/Tulip Army Airfield)".
• The closest airport to Bellingham International Airport (BLI) is Blaine Municipal Airport (BWS), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NNW of BLI.
• On March 1, 2008, Allegiant Air opened up their sixth base at Bellingham International Airport.
• In 1940 the United States Army Corps of Engineers took over the facility and expanded it to three full runways, revetments for parking aircraft, and development of personnel quarters.
• The furthest airport from Bellingham International Airport (BLI) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,700 miles (17,220 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Bellingham International Airport has bustling general aviation activity, most of which is for the purpose of sightseeing in the San Juan Islands, Victoria in British Columbia, or the Canadian Gulf Islands.
• Bellingham International Airport (BLI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport is presently undergoing a significant expansion to the commercial passenger terminal building which will increase the size of the terminal building from 27,000 to 85,000 square feet.