Nonstop flight route between Nantes, France and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE), Nantes, France and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,152 miles (or 6,682 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 Nantes Atlantique 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 Nantes Atlantique 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 Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE):

• The airport also has a separate freight terminal, situated to the south of the passenger terminal, which includes 6,000 m2 of entrepôt storage.
• Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Regional, a regional airline, was headquartered on the grounds of Nantes Atlantique Airport.
• Because of Nantes Atlantique Airport's relatively low elevation of 90 feet, planes can take off or land at Nantes Atlantique 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.
• Nantes Atlantique Airport handled 393,084 passengers last year.
• During World War II the airfield was briefly used as a British Royal Air Force base before being captured by German forces.
• The furthest airport from Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Nantes Atlantique Airport (meaning Nantes Atlantique Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,097 miles (19,468 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE) is Cholet Le Pontreau Airport (CET), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) E of NTE.
• In addition to being known as "Nantes Atlantique Airport", another name for NTE is "Aéroport Nantes Atlantique".
• Nantes Atlantique Airport is located just outside the Nantes 'périphérique', the city's peripheral ring motorway, to which it is linked by a short access road.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
• Survey teams selected sites in flat wheatlands close to the Canada-Minnesota border, north-northwest of Grand Forks.
• On 1 February 1993, ACC dropped the 319th Bomb Wing's primary nuclear mission and gave the wing the primary mission of B-1B conventional bombardment operations.
• 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.
• 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.
• The DC-11 SAGE blockhouse was later the headquarters of the SAC 321st Strategic Missile Wing.
• In addition to the interceptor squadrons, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center was established at Grand Forks in 1958.
• On 3 September 1974, the SAFSCOM Site Activation Team was relieved by the U.S.
• 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.