Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Barrow/Walney Island Airport (BWF), Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,800 miles (or 6,116 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 Barrow/Walney Island 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 Barrow/Walney Island 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• During the Cold War, GFAFB was a major installation of the Strategic Air Command, with B-52 bombers, KC-135 tankers, and Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles.
• 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 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.
• Opened 57 years ago in early 1957, the base's current host unit is the 319th Air Base Wing assigned to the Expeditionary Center of the Air Mobility Command.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".

Facts about Barrow/Walney Island Airport (BWF):

• BAE Systems operates flights to various UK destinations during the week, using three Beechcraft King Air B200 aircraft.
• Barrow/Walney Island Airport was opened during World War II, though the site had been used as an airship station since World War I.
• Barrow/Walney Island Airport (BWF) has 2 runways.
• Because of Barrow/Walney Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 44 feet, planes can take off or land at Barrow/Walney Island 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.
• Below are the destinations flown to by the BAE corporate shuttle.
• Commercial flights used the airport during the 1980s and 1990s.
• The closest airport to Barrow/Walney Island Airport (BWF) is Blackpool International Airport (BLK), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) SSE of BWF.
• The furthest airport from Barrow/Walney Island Airport (BWF) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,811 miles (19,007 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.