Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Andakombe, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Andakombe Airport (ADC), Andakombe, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,815 miles (or 12,577 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 Grand Forks Air Force Base and Andakombe 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 Grand Forks Air Force Base and Andakombe 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 Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• On 26 May 1972, President Nixon and Soviet general secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the ABM Treaty, which limited each nation to one site to protect strategic forces and one site to protect the "National Command Authority." With work about 85 percent complete at Grand Forks, the United States chose to finish construction at the North Dakota site.
• On 3 November 1967, the Department of Defense revealed that GFAFB was one of 10 initial locations to host a Sentinel Anti-Ballistic Missile site.
• The DC-11 SAGE blockhouse was later the headquarters of the SAC 321st Strategic Missile 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.
• 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.
• On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
• In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• The 319th transitioned from B-52H to re-engined B-52G aircraft in 1983, and added the AGM-86 Air Launched Cruise Missile in 1984.

Facts about Andakombe Airport (ADC):

• The furthest airport from Andakombe Airport (ADC) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,667 miles (18,776 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
• Because of Andakombe Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Andakombe 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 closest airport to Andakombe Airport (ADC) is Aiyura Airport (AYU), which is located 56 miles (90 kilometers) NNE of ADC.