Nonstop flight route between Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SPS to GFK:
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- About this route
- SPS Airport Information
- GFK Airport Information
- Facts about SPS
- Facts about GFK
- Map of Nearest Airports to SPS
- List of Nearest Airports to SPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPS
- List of Furthest Airports from SPS
- Map of Nearest Airports to GFK
- List of Nearest Airports to GFK
- Map of Furthest Airports from GFK
- List of Furthest Airports from GFK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS), Wichita Falls, Texas, United States and Grand Forks International Airport (GFK), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 967 miles (or 1,556 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 relatively short distance between Sheppard Air Force Base and Grand Forks International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SPS / KSPS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Wichita Falls, Texas, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°59'20"N by 98°29'30"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from SPS |
| More Information: | SPS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GFK / KGFK |
| Airport Name: | Grand Forks International Airport |
| Location: | Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 47°56'57"N by 97°10'33"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Grand Forks Regional Airport Authority |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 845 feet (258 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 4 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GFK |
| More Information: | GFK Maps & Info |
Facts about Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS):
- The furthest airport from Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,952 miles (17,626 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The 80th Flying Training Wing, also at Sheppard, conducts the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training program, a multi-nationally manned and managed flying training program chartered to produce combat pilots for both USAF and NATO.
- The closest airport to Sheppard Air Force Base (SPS) is Kickapoo Downtown Airport (KIP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) S of SPS.
- The aircraft mechanics school was transferred to Sheppard from Keesler AFB, Mississippi in April 1949 to make room for expansion of electronic training at that base.
- In addition to being known as "Sheppard Air Force Base", another name for SPS is "Sheppard AFB".
- In February 1992, restructuring and downsizing of the Air Force caused a realignment and renumbering of units at Sheppard.
- During World War II, then-Sheppard Field conducted basic training, and it also trained glider mechanics, technical and flying training instructors and B-29 Superfortress flight engineers.
- Sheppard AFB shares one runway with Wichita Falls Municipal Airport under a joint civil-military arrangement.
Facts about Grand Forks International Airport (GFK):
- The closest airport to Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) is Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), which is located only 10 miles (17 kilometers) W of GFK.
- Grand Forks International Airport is a public airport five miles northwest of Grand Forks, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota.
- Due to the increased amount of general aviation traffic, primarily from the UND Aerospace flight training school, a fourth runway has been completed on the southeast side of the airport.
- Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) has 4 runways.
- The now closed original passenger terminal at GFK was built in 1964.
- On October 3, 2012, United Airlines started flights between Denver, CO and Grand Forks, but on September 10, 2013 they announced they would end service on December 3, 2013 citing low loads.
- The furthest airport from Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,514 miles (16,921 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Grand Forks International Airport's relatively low elevation of 845 feet, planes can take off or land at Grand Forks 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.
- Most operations at GFK is from the University of North Dakota.
