Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Emigrant Gap, California, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from RCA to BLU:
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- About this route
- RCA Airport Information
- BLU Airport Information
- Facts about RCA
- Facts about BLU
- Map of Nearest Airports to RCA
- List of Nearest Airports to RCA
- Map of Furthest Airports from RCA
- List of Furthest Airports from RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to BLU
- List of Nearest Airports to BLU
- Map of Furthest Airports from BLU
- List of Furthest Airports from BLU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport (BLU), Emigrant Gap, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 968 miles (or 1,557 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 Ellsworth Air Force Base and Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure 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 |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BLU / KBLU |
Airport Name: | Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport |
Location: | Emigrant Gap, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 39°16'29"N by 120°42'34"W |
View all routes: | Routes from BLU |
More Information: | BLU Maps & Info |
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
- An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
- 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.
- The Titan I's life span was short in western South Dakota.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport (BLU):
- The closest airport to Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport (BLU) is Auburn Municipal Airport (AUN), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) SW of BLU.
- Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport is an airport in Emigrant Gap, Placer County, California.
- The furthest airport from Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport (BLU) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,220 miles (18,056 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.