Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Colonsay, Inner Hebrides, Scotland, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Colonsay Airport (CSA), Colonsay, Inner Hebrides, Scotland, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,628 miles (or 5,839 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 Colonsay 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 Colonsay 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):

• 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.
• During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
• 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.
• Survey teams selected sites in flat wheatlands close to the Canada-Minnesota border, north-northwest of Grand Forks.
• 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 the interceptor squadrons, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center was established at Grand Forks in 1958.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".

Facts about Colonsay Airport (CSA):

• The furthest airport from Colonsay Airport (CSA) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,759 miles (18,925 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Colonsay Airport (CSA) is Islay Airport (ILY), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) S of CSA.
• Colonsay Airport (CSA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Colonsay Airport", other names for CSA include "Port-adhair Colbhasaigh" and "EGEY".
• Because of Colonsay Airport's relatively low elevation of 44 feet, planes can take off or land at Colonsay 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.