Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Madurai, India:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Madurai Airport (IXM), Madurai, India would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,434 miles (or 13,573 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 Madurai 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 Madurai 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):

• 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 March 1995, the 1995 Base Realignment and Closure Commission selected the 321st Strategic Missile Wing for inactivation.
• On 18 February 1957, the 478th Fighter Group was activated at Grand Forks.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".
• 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.
• Survey teams selected sites in flat wheatlands close to the Canada-Minnesota border, north-northwest of Grand Forks.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Madurai Airport (IXM):

• The furthest airport from Madurai Airport (IXM) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,407 miles (18,358 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• Madurai Airport (IXM) currently has only 1 runway.
• It was identified as one of 35 non-metro airports for modernization, and thus the new integrated terminal building was inaugurated on 12 September 2010.
• Because of Madurai Airport's relatively low elevation of 446 feet, planes can take off or land at Madurai 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.
• The closest airport to Madurai Airport (IXM) is Tiruchirappalli International Airport (TRZ), which is located 77 miles (124 kilometers) NNE of IXM.
• Considering the growing cargo potential in Madurai Airport, AAI has decided to modify old terminal into a full fledged cargo complex.