Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Apia, Samoa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Fagali'i Airport (FGI), Apia, Samoa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,875 miles (or 9,454 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 Ellsworth Air Force Base and Fagali'i Airport, 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 Ellsworth Air Force Base and Fagali'i Airport. 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 Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• 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.
• 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.
• Air Defense Command deactivated the Ellsworth radar site on 15 August 1962 and the 740th was discontinued.
• 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.
• 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".
• Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
• When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.
• The mission of the 28th Bomb Wing is to deliver decisive combat power for global response.

Facts about Fagali'i Airport (FGI):

• On 1 July 2009, Polynesian Airlines reopened Fagali'i airport and resumed a service that included international flights to Pago Pago, American Samoa.
• The furthest airport from Fagali'i Airport (FGI) is Zinder Airport (ZND), which is nearly antipodal to Fagali'i Airport (meaning Fagali'i Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Zinder Airport), and is located 12,388 miles (19,936 kilometers) away in Zinder, Niger.
• Fagali'i Airport (FGI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The proposal to re-open the airport was controversial and attracted criticism both for the safety and environmental issues with the airport's configuration and for the potential burden on local communities should the scheme fail.
• The closest airport to Fagali'i Airport (FGI) is Faleolo International Airport (APW), which is located only 18 miles (29 kilometers) W of FGI.