Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Ponce, Puerto Rico:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RDR to PSE:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- RDR Airport Information
- PSE Airport Information
- Facts about RDR
- Facts about PSE
- 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 PSE
- List of Nearest Airports to PSE
- Map of Furthest Airports from PSE
- List of Furthest Airports from PSE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Mercedita Airport (PSE), Ponce, Puerto Rico would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,699 miles (or 4,344 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 Mercedita 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 Mercedita 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: |
|
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: | PSE / TJPS |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
GPS Coordinates: | 18°0'29"N by 66°33'47"W |
Area Served: | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
Operator/Owner: | Puerto Rico Ports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 29 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from PSE |
More Information: | PSE Maps & Info |
Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):
- 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 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.
- 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.
- Following the departure of the last B-1B aircraft in 1994, the base transferred to the new Air Mobility Command and the 319th Bomb Wing was redesignated as the 319th Air Refueling Wing.
- 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.
- In October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
- Grand Forks Air Force Base was established on 1 December 1955, with construction beginning in the fall of that year.
Facts about Mercedita Airport (PSE):
- Because of Mercedita Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Mercedita 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 Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport (ARE), which is located 31 miles (51 kilometers) NNW of PSE.
- After Ponce's mayor Rafael Cordero signed a contract to build a major seaport in the area, Mercedita's directors decided to expand the airport's runway to 8,000 ft to accommodate anticipated growth in airline traffic.
- Mercedita Airport (PSE) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Mercedita Airport", other names for PSE include "Aeropuerto Mercedita" and "18.00'30"N, 66.33'47"W".
- The Puerto Rico Ports Authority recently announced an investment of 7 million dollars to extend Mercedita's runway to 8,000 feet.
- The airport is also home of the southern aerial division of the Puerto Rico Police Department.
- The airport has been enlarged on various occasions.
- The furthest airport from Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Barrow Island Airport (BWB), which is nearly antipodal to Mercedita Airport (meaning Mercedita Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Barrow Island Airport), and is located 12,201 miles (19,636 kilometers) away in Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia.