Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Goba, Ethiopia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Robe Airport (GOB), Goba, Ethiopia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,215 miles (or 13,221 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 Robe 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 Robe 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):

• To provide air defense of the base, the United States Army established the Ellsworth AFB Defense Area in 1957 and constructed Nike-Ajax Surface-to-air missile sites for air defense.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.
• 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.
• In March 1994, Ellsworth welcomed the 34th Bomb Squadron, a geographically separated unit that was awaiting airfield upgrades before it could return to its parent organization, the 366th Wing, at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.
• 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 mission of the 28th Bomb Wing is to deliver decisive combat power for global response.
• 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.

Facts about Robe Airport (GOB):

• The closest airport to Robe Airport (GOB) is Ghinnir Airport (GNN), which is located 46 miles (74 kilometers) E of GOB.
• The furthest airport from Robe Airport (GOB) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is nearly antipodal to Robe Airport (meaning Robe Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Atuona Airport), and is located 12,243 miles (19,703 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• Because of Robe Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Robe 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.