Nonstop flight route between Keflavík (near Reykjavík), Iceland and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from KEF to RDR:
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- About this route
- KEF Airport Information
- RDR Airport Information
- Facts about KEF
- Facts about RDR
- Map of Nearest Airports to KEF
- List of Nearest Airports to KEF
- Map of Furthest Airports from KEF
- List of Furthest Airports from KEF
- Map of Nearest Airports to RDR
- List of Nearest Airports to RDR
- Map of Furthest Airports from RDR
- List of Furthest Airports from RDR
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Keflavík International Airport (KEF), Keflavík (near Reykjavík), Iceland and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,894 miles (or 4,658 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 Keflavík International Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base, 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 Keflavík International Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | KEF / BIKF |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Keflavík (near Reykjavík), Iceland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 63°59'5"N by 22°36'20"W |
| Area Served: | Greater Reykjavík Area |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 171 feet (52 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from KEF |
| More Information: | KEF Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | RDR / KRDR |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 47°57'39"N by 97°24'3"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from RDR |
| More Information: | RDR Maps & Info |
Facts about Keflavík International Airport (KEF):
- Keflavík International Airport (KEF) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Keflavík International Airport (KEF) is Reykjavík Airport (RKV), which is located 22 miles (36 kilometers) ENE of KEF.
- The furthest airport from Keflavík International Airport (KEF) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,188 miles (18,005 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
- In addition to being known as "Keflavík International Airport", another name for KEF is "Keflavíkurflugvöllur".
- Transport between the airport and Reykjavik city is by road only.
- Because of Keflavík International Airport's relatively low elevation of 171 feet, planes can take off or land at Keflavík 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.
- During the war the airport complex only served military purposes, but at war's end it became a refueling stop for the quickly developing international civil aviation crossing the Atlantic.
- In 2014 the current terminal will be enlarged.
- Keflavík International Airport, also known as Reykjavík-Keflavík Airport, is the largest airport in Iceland and the country's main hub for international transportation.
Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):
- Grand Forks AFB is the home of the Air Mobility Command's 319th Air Base Wing.
- During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
- In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
- During the Cold War, GFAFB was a major installation of the Strategic Air Command, with B-52 bombers, KC-135 tankers, and Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles.
- On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
- The DC-11 SAGE blockhouse was later the headquarters of the SAC 321st Strategic Missile Wing.
- In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
