Nonstop flight route between Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany and Minot, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mainz Finthen Airport (QMZ), Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany and Minot Air Force Base (MIB), Minot, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,458 miles (or 7,174 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 Mainz Finthen Airport and Minot 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 Mainz Finthen Airport and Minot 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 Mainz Finthen Airport (QMZ):

• The airport was first opened in 1939 as a Luftwaffe military airfield.
• Because of Mainz Finthen Airport's relatively low elevation of 525 feet, planes can take off or land at Mainz Finthen 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.
• Mainz Finthen Airport (QMZ) has 2 runways.
• The airport was taken over by the French military in July 1945, and engineers moved in to clear the wartime wreckage and rebuild the facility.
• On 16 and 17 November 1980, Holy Mass was celebrated by Pope John Paul II during his first major pastoral visit to Germany on the airfield with thousands of believers attending.
• In addition to being known as "Mainz Finthen Airport", other names for QMZ include "Flugplatz Mainz-Finthen" and "Advanced Landing Ground Y-64".
• The furthest airport from Mainz Finthen Airport (QMZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,959 miles (19,246 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Mainz Finthen Airport (QMZ) is Lucius D. Clay KaserneWiesbaden Army AirfieldWiesbaden Air BaseAdvanced Landing Ground Y-80Fliegerhorst Wiesbaden (WIE), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) NE of QMZ.
• With the end of the war, Ober Olm Airfield was closed on 20 June 1945.
• Since the withdrawal of the United States Army, the airfield has been operated by the Mainz Aviation Club beginning in 1994, and on 1 August 2008, turned over to a commercial airport operator.

Facts about Minot Air Force Base (MIB):

• On 1 February 1963, SAC, as part of a conversion to unit designations with historical significance, activated the 450th Bombardment Wing at Minot and the 720th Bombardment Squadron, along with the formation of the 450th Airborne Missile Maintenance Squadron, 450th Armament & Electronics Maintenance Squadron, 450th Field Maintenance Squadron, and the 450th Organizational Maintenance Squadron simultaneously.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 862d Combat Support Group was deactivated on 31 July 1972, with host unit duties being taken over by the 91st Combat Support Group.
• In 1961, the Air Force selected the land around Minot for a new Minuteman I ICBM complex.
• In addition to being known as "Minot Air Force Base", another name for MIB is "Minot AFB".