Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Merritt Island, Florida, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from RCA to COI:
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- About this route
- RCA Airport Information
- COI Airport Information
- Facts about RCA
- Facts about COI
- 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 COI
- List of Nearest Airports to COI
- Map of Furthest Airports from COI
- List of Furthest Airports from COI
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Merritt Island Airport (COI), Merritt Island, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,648 miles (or 2,652 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 Merritt Island 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: | COI / KCOI |
Airport Name: | Merritt Island Airport |
Location: | Merritt Island, Florida, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 28°20'30"N by 80°41'8"W |
Operator/Owner: | Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 7 feet (2 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from COI |
More Information: | COI Maps & Info |
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
- 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 is 10 miles east of Rapid City, S.D.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
Facts about Merritt Island Airport (COI):
- An operations building and maintenance hangar were located on the south side of the airfield and the Mosquito Control District had a maintenance hangar on the north side of the airfield.
- Because of Merritt Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Merritt Island 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 closest airport to Merritt Island Airport (COI) is Patrick Air Force Base (COF), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) SSE of COI.
- In the early 1940s, the Brevard County Mosquito Control District constructed the Central Brevard Airport.
- The furthest airport from Merritt Island Airport (COI) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,544 miles (18,578 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- Merritt Island Airport (COI) currently has only 1 runway.