Nonstop flight route between Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from LAY to RCA:
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- About this route
- LAY Airport Information
- RCA Airport Information
- Facts about LAY
- Facts about RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAY
- List of Nearest Airports to LAY
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAY
- List of Furthest Airports from LAY
- 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 Ladysmith Airport (LAY), Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,646 miles (or 15,523 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 Ladysmith Airport and Ellsworth 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 Ladysmith Airport and Ellsworth Air Force Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAY / FALY |
Airport Name: | Ladysmith Airport |
Location: | Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 28°34'47"S by 29°45'11"E |
Operator/Owner: | Municipal |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 3548 feet (1,081 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAY |
More Information: | LAY Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
Airport Names: |
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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 Ladysmith Airport (LAY):
- The furthest airport from Ladysmith Airport (LAY) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,789 miles (18,972 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
- Ladysmith Airport (LAY) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Ladysmith Airport (LAY) is Mokhotlong Airport (MKH), which is located 64 miles (102 kilometers) SW of LAY.
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- 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.
- When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.
- In 1986, the base and the 28 BMW made extensive preparations to phase out the aging B-52 fleet and become the second home for the advanced B-1B Lancer.
- 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.
- Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
- Ellsworth's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.
- The host unit at Ellsworth is the 28th Bomb Wing assigned to the Air Combat Command's Twelfth Air Force.
- 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.