Nonstop flight route between Derry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between City of Derry Airport (LDY), Derry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,636 miles (or 5,851 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 City of Derry 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 City of Derry 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about City of Derry Airport (LDY):

• At the end of 2008, British Airways, operated by Loganair as a franchise agreement, ceased the Glasgow International route which had operated for 30 years, following the loss in July 2008 of their public service obligation route to Dublin.
• The closest airport to City of Derry Airport (LDY) is Belfast International Airport (BFS), which is located 46 miles (74 kilometers) SE of LDY.
• On 9 October 2009, Derry City Council who own and operate the airport began the process which will lead to the privatisation of the facility.
• Because of City of Derry Airport's relatively low elevation of 23 feet, planes can take off or land at City of Derry 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.
• The furthest airport from City of Derry Airport (LDY) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,838 miles (19,051 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• City of Derry Airport (LDY) currently has only 1 runway.
• As of April 2010, it has been reported that the airport has emerged from passenger recession, with passenger numbers released for February of the same year showing an increase over that of the same period for the year before.
• City of Derry Airport handled 384,973 passengers last year.
• The recently completed runway safety zone extension and apron works has allowed the CAA to lift the capacity restriction on aircraft operating out of the airport.
• In addition to being known as "City of Derry Airport", another name for LDY is "Londonderry/Eglinton Airport[1]".
• During 1998 and 1999 safety improvements were undertaken at the airport as a matter of priority.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• 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".
• Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.
• 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 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.
• SAGE operations were extremely expansive and GFADS was inactivated on 1 December 1963, when it was merged with the Minot Air Defense Sector at Minot AFB to the west.
• On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
• 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.