Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Buraidah, Saudi Arabia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RDR to ELQ:
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- About this route
- RDR Airport Information
- ELQ Airport Information
- Facts about RDR
- Facts about ELQ
- Map of Nearest Airports to RDR
- List of Nearest Airports to RDR
- Map of Furthest Airports from RDR
- List of Furthest Airports from RDR
- Map of Nearest Airports to ELQ
- List of Nearest Airports to ELQ
- Map of Furthest Airports from ELQ
- List of Furthest Airports from ELQ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (ELQ), Buraidah, Saudi Arabia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,769 miles (or 10,893 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 Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional 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 Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RDR / KRDR |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°57'39"N by 97°24'3"W |
View all routes: | Routes from RDR |
More Information: | RDR Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ELQ / OEGS |
Airport Name: | Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport |
Location: | Buraidah, Saudi Arabia |
GPS Coordinates: | 26°18'10"N by 43°46'26"E |
Area Served: | Gassim |
Operator/Owner: | General Authority of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 2126 feet (648 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from ELQ |
More Information: | ELQ Maps & Info |
Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):
- On 3 September 1974, the SAFSCOM Site Activation Team was relieved by the U.S.
- On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
- 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.
- In 1971, the 18th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was inactivated and the 460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron replaced the unit.
- 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.
- On 1 November 1964, 321st Strategic Missile Wing was organized as the Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile wing at GFAFB, the first in SAC.
- In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- In 1973, the 319th Bomb Wing acquired the AGM-69 Short Range Attack Missile, replacing the older AGM-28 Hound Dog air-to-ground missile aboard its B-52H aircraft.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (ELQ):
- Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (ELQ) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (ELQ) is Dawadmi Domestic Airport (DWD), which is located 130 miles (209 kilometers) S of ELQ.
- The furthest airport from Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (ELQ) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is nearly antipodal to Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (meaning Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Totegegie Airport), and is located 12,199 miles (19,632 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.