Nonstop flight route between Launceston, Tasmania, Australia and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Launceston Airport (LST), Launceston, Tasmania, Australia and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,983 miles (or 14,457 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 Launceston 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 Launceston 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 Launceston Airport (LST):

• The closest airport to Launceston Airport (LST) is George Town Aerodrome (GEE), which is located 38 miles (60 kilometers) NNW of LST.
• Launceston Airport's passenger numbers have increased dramatically in recent years, significantly exceeding the airports forecasts in the Airport Master Plan 2005.
• Virgin Australia currently has up to four daily flights from Melbourne and one from Sydney.
• As part of the expansion, two new gate lounges were installed, with the capability for two more gate lounges when required in future.
• Because of Launceston Airport's relatively low elevation of 562 feet, planes can take off or land at Launceston 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.
• The furthest airport from Launceston Airport (LST) is Corvo Airport (CVU), which is nearly antipodal to Launceston Airport (meaning Launceston Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Corvo Airport), and is located 12,280 miles (19,763 kilometers) away in Corvo Island, Azores, Portugal.
• After the formation of the Tasmanian Aero Club in 1927, the first air travel facility in Tasmania was built on the site.
• Launceston Airport (LST) has 3 runways.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.
• 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 installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
• 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.
• Military organizations periodically upgrade manpower and machines from time to time to meet new national security requirements and Ellsworth Air Force Base's organizations were no exception.
• 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.