Nonstop flight route between Gadsden, Alabama, United States and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GAD to RCA:
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- About this route
- GAD Airport Information
- RCA Airport Information
- Facts about GAD
- Facts about RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to GAD
- List of Nearest Airports to GAD
- Map of Furthest Airports from GAD
- List of Furthest Airports from GAD
- Map of Nearest Airports to RCA
- List of Nearest Airports to RCA
- Map of Furthest Airports from RCA
- List of Furthest Airports from RCA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD), Gadsden, Alabama, United States and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,147 miles (or 1,846 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 Northeast Alabama Regional Airport and Ellsworth Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GAD / KGAD |
Airport Name: | Northeast Alabama Regional Airport |
Location: | Gadsden, Alabama, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°58'22"N by 86°5'21"W |
Area Served: | Gadsden, Alabama |
Operator/Owner: | Gadsden Airport Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 569 feet (173 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from GAD |
More Information: | GAD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Rapid City, South Dakota, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°8'47"N by 103°4'28"W |
View all routes: | Routes from RCA |
More Information: | RCA Maps & Info |
Facts about Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD):
- The closest airport to Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) is Talladega Municipal Airport (ASN), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) S of GAD.
- Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,225 miles (18,064 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Northeast Alabama Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 569 feet, planes can take off or land at Northeast Alabama Regional 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.
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- The airfield was again temporarily shut down from September 1946 – March 1947 and underwent a major construction program to upgrade the temporary wartime facilities to that of a permanent base.
- Ellsworth's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.
- The closest airport to Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA) is Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) S of RCA.
- In October 1960, Ellsworth entered the "Space Age," with the activation of the 850th Strategic Missile Squadron, initially assigned to the 28 BMW.
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
- The furthest airport from Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,579 miles (17,026 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Shortly after additional runway improvements, in July 1949, the 28 BMW began conversion from B-29s to the huge B-36 Peacemaker.