Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Big Mountain, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Big Mountain Air Force Station (BMX), Big Mountain, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,408 miles (or 3,876 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 Big Mountain Air Force Station, 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 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.
• SAGE operations were extremely expansive and GFADS was inactivated on 1 December 1963, when it was merged with the Minot Air Defense Sector at Minot AFB to the west.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• Grand Forks Air Force Base is a United States Air Force installation in northeastern North Dakota, located north of Emerado and 16 miles west of Grand Forks.
• During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
• Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.

Facts about Big Mountain Air Force Station (BMX):

• The furthest airport from Big Mountain Air Force Station (BMX) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,683 miles (17,193 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Big Mountain Air Force Station (BMX) is Kokhanok Airport (KNK), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) ENE of BMX.
• Because of Big Mountain Air Force Station's relatively low elevation of 663 feet, planes can take off or land at Big Mountain Air Force Station 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.
• Big Mountain Air Force Station (BMX) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Big Mountain Air Force Station", another name for BMX is "37AK".