Nonstop flight route between St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,288 miles (or 6,902 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 MoD St Athan and Rapid City Regional 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 MoD St Athan and Rapid City Regional 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 MoD St Athan (DGX):

• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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 MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Just before 1100 GMT on 11 February 2009, two Grob Tutor aircraft flying out of St Athan were involved in a mid-air collision in which two Air Training Corps cadets and their instructors, both RAF pilots, died.
• In March 2003 it was confirmed that a new hi-tech maintenance centre would be built, creating 3,300 jobs.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• The new academy was claimed to create up to 5000 jobs at St Athan with a £14 billion investment over 25 years with an estimated £57.4 million spent into the local economy.
• RAF St Athan was also home for the Royal Air Force Administrative Apprentice Training School.

Facts about Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP):

• Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) has 2 runways.
• Rapid City Regional Airport is a city-owned public airport nine miles southeast of Rapid City, in Pennington County, South Dakota.
• The closest airport to Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) is Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) N of RAP.
• The furthest airport from Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,585 miles (17,035 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.