Nonstop flight route between Arxan, Inner Mongolia, China and Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (YIE), Arxan, Inner Mongolia, China and Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,483 miles (or 8,823 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 Arxan Yi'ershi Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base, 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 Arxan Yi'ershi Airport and Grand Forks Air Force Base. 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 Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (YIE):

• In addition to being known as "Arxan Yi'ershi Airport", other names for YIE include "阿尔山伊尔施机场", "Ā'ěrshān Yī'ěrshī Jīchǎng" and "ZBES".
• Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (YIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (YIE) is Ulanhot Airport (HLH), which is located 126 miles (202 kilometers) SE of YIE.
• The furthest airport from Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (YIE) is Puerto Deseado Airport (PUD), which is nearly antipodal to Arxan Yi'ershi Airport (meaning Arxan Yi'ershi Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Puerto Deseado Airport), and is located 12,164 miles (19,576 kilometers) away in Puerto Deseado, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina.

Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):

• Grand Forks AFB is the home of the Air Mobility Command's 319th Air Base Wing.
• 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 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.
• During 1965, the wing’s three missile squadrons were activated and crew training and certification began at Vandenberg AFB in southern California.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 October 1977, the PAR came under operational control of the USAF, which operated it thereafter as part of its early warning system.
• In 1971, the 18th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was inactivated and the 460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron replaced the unit.
• In addition to being known as "Grand Forks Air Force Base", another name for RDR is "Grand Forks AFB".