Nonstop flight route between Lüliang, Shanxi, China and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lüliang Airport (LLV), Lüliang, Shanxi, China and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,392 miles (or 10,287 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 Lüliang 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 Lüliang 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 Lüliang Airport (LLV):

• The furthest airport from Lüliang Airport (LLV) is Colonia Catriel Airport (CCT), which is nearly antipodal to Lüliang Airport (meaning Lüliang Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Colonia Catriel Airport), and is located 12,379 miles (19,922 kilometers) away in Colonia Catriel, Río Negro, Argentina.
• In addition to being known as "Lüliang Airport", other names for LLV include "吕梁机场", "Lǚliáng Jīchǎng" and "ZBLL".
• The closest airport to Lüliang Airport (LLV) is Taiyuan Wuxu International Airport (TYN), which is located 81 miles (131 kilometers) E of LLV.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• After the Army closed their facilities, the military housing at the Nike Integrated Fire Control sites was transferred to control of Ellsworth, and was used as Air Force military family housing until about 1990.
• 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.
• 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.
• On 1 June 1971, SAC deactivated the 821st Strategic Aerospace Division and by October of that year, an upgraded LGM-30F Minuteman II also replaced the Minuteman I missiles.
• An AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
• To provide air defense of the base, the United States Army established the Ellsworth AFB Defense Area in 1957 and constructed Nike-Ajax Surface-to-air missile sites for air defense.
• The base experienced one of its worst peacetime tragedies in March 1953 when an RB-36 and its entire crew of 23 crashed in Newfoundland while returning from a routine exercise in Europe.
• Ellsworth AFB is 10 miles east of Rapid City, S.D.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.