Nonstop flight route between Groton, Connecticut, United States and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Groton-New London Airport (GON), Groton, Connecticut, United States and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,577 miles (or 2,538 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 Groton-New London Airport and Ellsworth Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Groton-New London Airport (GON):

• Because of Groton-New London Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Groton-New London 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.
• In 1980, the name of the airport changed to Groton-New London Airport.
• The furthest airport from Groton-New London Airport (GON) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,794 miles (18,980 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Groton-New London Airport (GON) has 2 runways.
• Columbia Air Services and Lanmar Aviation have been the two fixed-base operators serving the airport.
• The closest airport to Groton-New London Airport (GON) is Elizabeth Field (FID), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) S of GON.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• 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.
• Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
• An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.
• When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.
• The 740th AC&W Squadron began operations in 1955 with AN/MPS-7 search radar, and initially the station functioned as a Ground-Control Intercept and warning station.
• Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.