Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Belleville, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV), Belleville, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 787 miles (or 1,266 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 MidAmerica St. Louis Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• 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.
• Air Defense Command activated the 740th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron at Rapid City AFB on 1 February 1953 under the ADC 31st Air Division.
• 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.
• When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.
• 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.
• 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.
• An AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".

Facts about MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV):

• MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV) has 2 runways.
• Because of MidAmerica St. Louis Airport's relatively low elevation of 459 feet, planes can take off or land at MidAmerica St. Louis 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 MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,016 miles (17,728 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV) is St. Louis Downtown Airport (CPS), which is located only 17 miles (28 kilometers) W of BLV.
• Four passenger airlines have started operations at MidAmerica only to go out of business or close operations.
• MidAmerica's construction has included creation of the 10,000-foot 14L/32R runway, adding 1,000 feet to the existing west runway, adding passenger and cargo terminals on the east side of the facility and a 7,000-foot taxiway connecting the two runways.
• MidAmerica has operated as a Joint Use Airport since beginning operations in November 1997 and is currently served by Allegiant Air with direct flights between MidAmerica St.
• In addition to being known as "MidAmerica St. Louis Airport", another name for BLV is "Scott Air Force Base".