Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Greven, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO), Greven, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,239 miles (or 6,823 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 Münster Osnabrück International 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 Münster Osnabrück International 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):

• In 1971, the 18th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was inactivated and the 460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron replaced the unit.
• During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
• 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.
• In addition to the interceptor squadrons, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center was established at Grand Forks in 1958.
• 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 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".
• 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.

Facts about Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO):

• Münster Osnabrück International Airport or Flughafen Münster/Osnabrück, is the fourth largest international commercial airport in North Rhine-Westphalia.
• Despite many problems the project was completed on 30 June 1969, within a few days of the planned date.
• Because of Münster Osnabrück International Airport's relatively low elevation of 157 feet, planes can take off or land at Münster Osnabrück International 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.
• Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Münster Osnabrück International Airport", another name for FMO is "Flughafen Münster/Osnabrück".
• The airport has roughly 7500 parking spaces spread over multiple car parks, two of which are multi-storey.
• In mid 1967 the German authorities approached the British Army for assistance in building an airfield to serve the Münster-Osnabrück area.
• The closest airport to Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO) is Rheine-Bentlage Air Base (ZPQ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NW of FMO.
• The furthest airport from Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,831 miles (19,040 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The first charter flight from Münster/Osnabrück airport to Palma de Mallorca took place in 1973.
• The cities of Münster and Greven and the Steinfurt district plan to donate an area of around 500 acres to the airport, for airport-related commercial activities.