Nonstop flight route between Chennai (Madras), India and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Chennai International Airport (MAA), Chennai (Madras), India and Grand Forks International Airport (GFK), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,224 miles (or 13,235 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 Chennai International Airport and Grand Forks International Airport, 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 Chennai International Airport and Grand Forks International Airport. 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 Chennai International Airport (MAA):

• The history of civil aviation in India began in December 1912, with the opening of the first domestic air route between Karachi and Delhi by the Indian state Air services in collaboration with the Imperial Airways, United Kingdom.
• Chennai International Airport (MAA) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Chennai International Airport (MAA) is Tirupati Airport (TIR), which is located 61 miles (99 kilometers) NW of MAA.
• The Air Cargo Complex at the Chennai airport was established in 1978, when all regulatory and facilitating agencies were brought under one roof for faster processing/clearance of international cargo, to cater for air cargo movement in the southern region.
• Because of Chennai International Airport's relatively low elevation of 52 feet, planes can take off or land at Chennai 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 2009, an integrated cargo complex was planned in the cargo complex of the airport.
• An air cargo complex was commissioned on 1 February 1978 for processing of import, export, and transshipment cargo, in addition to unaccompanied luggage, which is the second gateway air cargo terminal in the country after the one at Kolkata airport.
• The furthest airport from Chennai International Airport (MAA) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,351 miles (18,268 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• In addition to being known as "Chennai International Airport", another name for MAA is "Madras Airport Meenambakkam Airport சென்னை பன்னாட்டு வானுர்தி நிலையம்".
• With the second airport near Sriperumbudur under consideration, the project for a parallel runway has been put on hold and the total land required for the airport expansion reduced from 1069.99 acres to 800 acres.

Facts about Grand Forks International Airport (GFK):

• In the mid-2000s, discussion began of upgrading or totally replacing the terminal as it has structural and safety problems and leaves little to no room for expansion.
• The furthest airport from Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,514 miles (16,921 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 2009 the airport's FAA control tower was the 23rd busiest in the nation, with 346,165 tower operations.
• Because of Grand Forks International Airport's relatively low elevation of 845 feet, planes can take off or land at Grand Forks 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.
• Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) has 4 runways.
• Due to the increased amount of general aviation traffic, primarily from the UND Aerospace flight training school, a fourth runway has been completed on the southeast side of the airport.
• FedEx is the second largest employer at KGFK.
• The closest airport to Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) is Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), which is located only 10 miles (17 kilometers) W of GFK.
• A unique attribute of KGFK is that it is the University of North Dakota’s Aerospace program.