Nonstop flight route between Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RDR to GBK:
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- About this route
- RDR Airport Information
- GBK Airport Information
- Facts about RDR
- Facts about GBK
- 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 GBK
- List of Nearest Airports to GBK
- Map of Furthest Airports from GBK
- List of Furthest Airports from GBK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR), Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States and Gbangbatok Airport (GBK), Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,588 miles (or 8,993 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 Gbangbatok 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 Gbangbatok 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: |
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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: | GBK / GFGK |
Airport Name: | Gbangbatok Airport |
Location: | Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone |
GPS Coordinates: | 7°48'45"N by 12°22'40"W |
Area Served: | Gbangbatok |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 75 feet (23 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GBK |
More Information: | GBK Maps & Info |
Facts about Grand Forks Air Force Base (RDR):
- 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.
- 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 3 November 1967, the Department of Defense revealed that GFAFB was one of 10 initial locations to host a Sentinel Anti-Ballistic Missile site.
- 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.
- On 1 November 1964, 321st Strategic Missile Wing was organized as the Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile wing at GFAFB, the first in SAC.
- Grand Forks AFB is the home of the Air Mobility Command's 319th Air Base Wing.
- In addition to the interceptor squadrons, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center was established at Grand Forks in 1958.
- Survey teams selected sites in flat wheatlands close to the Canada-Minnesota border, north-northwest of 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.
Facts about Gbangbatok Airport (GBK):
- Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) is Sherbro International Airport (BTE), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSW of GBK.
- Because of Gbangbatok Airport's relatively low elevation of 75 feet, planes can take off or land at Gbangbatok 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 furthest airport from Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) is Mota Lava Airport (MTV), which is nearly antipodal to Gbangbatok Airport (meaning Gbangbatok Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mota Lava Airport), and is located 12,032 miles (19,364 kilometers) away in Mota Lava, Vanuatu.