Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Bossier City, Louisiana, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD), Bossier City, Louisiana, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,086 miles (or 1,747 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 relatively short distance between Grand Forks Air Force Base and Barksdale Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• The DC-11 SAGE blockhouse was later the headquarters of the SAC 321st Strategic Missile Wing.
• Due to the continuance of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, GFAFB was originally an Air Defense Command fighter-interceptor air base.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".

Facts about Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD):

• The closest airport to Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD) is Shreveport Downtown Airport (DTN), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) WNW of BAD.
• The furthest airport from Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 10,884 miles (17,516 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• As early as 1924, the citizens of Shreveport became interested in hosting a military flying field.
• In addition to being known as "Barksdale Air Force Base", another name for BAD is "Barksdale AFB".
• Barksdale is one of two remaining bases with assigned B-52 aircraft, all H models.
• The first SAC unit at Barksdale was the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was reassigned to the base from McGuire AFB on 1 October.
• Units at Barksdale include the oldest bomb wing in the Air Force, the 2d Bomb Wing.
• The 2d Bomb Wing conducts the primary mission of Barksdale AFB with three squadrons of B-52H Stratofortress bombers – the 11th Bomb Squadron, which is the training squadron, the 20th Bomb Squadron and the 96th Bomb Squadron.
• The 2d Bomb Wing was assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command on 1 February 2010.
• During World War II, the airfield trained replacement crews and entire units between 1942 and 1945.