Nonstop flight route between Minot, North Dakota, United States and Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Minot Air Force Base (MIB), Minot, North Dakota, United States and Manston Airport (MSE), Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,178 miles (or 6,724 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 Minot Air Force Base and Manston 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 Minot Air Force Base and Manston 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 Minot Air Force Base (MIB):

• The ADC 32d Fighter Group was the first operational unit at Minot, with its 433d Fighter-Interceptor squadron.
• In July 1968, the 450th Bombardment Wing and 455th Strategic Missile Wing were inactivated, being from Travis AFB, California, when jurisdiction of Travis was assumed by the Military Airlift Command and the 91st Strategic Missile Wing from Glasgow AFB, Montana, when it closed.
• The closest airport to Minot Air Force Base (MIB) is Minot International Airport (MOT), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) SSE of MIB.
• In 1961, the Air Force selected the land around Minot for a new Minuteman I ICBM complex.
• The furthest airport from Minot Air Force Base (MIB) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,320 miles (16,609 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The 91st Missile Wing of the Global Strike Command is responsible for maintaining the Minuteman III nuclear missiles, located in three main fields to the north, west, and south of the base.
• The 4th Post Attack Command & Control Squadron at Ellsworth AFB, SD maintained several EC-135 "Looking Glass" Aircraft on an alert at MAFB for coverage of the missile squadrons as a secondary Launch Control Center.
• In addition to being known as "Minot Air Force Base", another name for MIB is "Minot AFB".
• The 91st Missile Wing was transferred to the new Global Strike Command on 1 December 2009, and the 5th BW officially transferred to AFGSC on 1 February 2010.

Facts about Manston Airport (MSE):

• Manston Airport handled 8,595 passengers last year.
• From July 2013, British Airways has operated test flights and crew training for the Airbus A380 from Manston, which was followed by a similar exercise for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.
• Because of Manston Airport's relatively low elevation of 178 feet, planes can take off or land at Manston 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 Manston Airport (MSE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,906 miles (19,162 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Charter flights were operated from Manston by Seguro Travel Limited, operating as "Kent Escapes".
• Kent International Airport was initially a 38 acres civilian area within the former RAF Manston that included the existing terminal building and an apron where passengers embarked and the largest freighters were loaded.
• After the plan was published, the Ministry of Defence announced its intention to sell off RAF Manston.
• The closest airport to Manston Airport (MSE) is Lympne Airport (LYM), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SW of MSE.
• In the Second World War, Manston was heavily bombed during the Battle of Britain.
• Manston Airport (MSE) currently has only 1 runway.