Nonstop flight route between Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Pulkovo Airport (LED), Saint Petersburg, Russia (formerly Leningrad between 1924 and 1991) and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,785 miles (or 7,701 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 Pulkovo 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 Pulkovo 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Pulkovo Airport (LED):

• Because of Pulkovo Airport's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Pulkovo 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.
• ICAO category 1 standards were implemented in 1965, making way for international operations.
• The field's IATA code of "LED" derives from the city's previous name, Leningrad.
• In addition to being known as "Pulkovo Airport", another name for LED is "Аэропо́рт Пу́лково".
• For a more comprehensive list, see Aviation Safety Network Entry for LED.
• The closest airport to Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Rzhevka Airport (RVH), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) NE of LED.
• Pulkovo Airport handled 12,854,366 passengers last year.
• Pulkovo Airport (LED) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Pulkovo Airport (LED) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,868 miles (17,491 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• Ellsworth AFB is 10 miles east of Rapid City, S.D.
• In March 1944, heavy bomber operational training ended and the 225th Army Air Force Base Unit began training of replacement personnel for deployed heavy bombardment units in the overseas combat theaters.
• 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.
• 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.
• In October 1960, Ellsworth entered the "Space Age," with the activation of the 850th Strategic Missile Squadron, initially assigned to the 28 BMW.
• Air Defense Command deactivated the Ellsworth radar site on 15 August 1962 and the 740th was discontinued.
• 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.