Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Kauhajoki, Finland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Kauhajoki Airfield (KHJ), Kauhajoki, Finland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,480 miles (or 7,210 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 Kauhajoki Airfield, 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 Kauhajoki Airfield. 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):

• Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
• 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".
• 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.
• 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.
• When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.

Facts about Kauhajoki Airfield (KHJ):

• The furthest airport from Kauhajoki Airfield (KHJ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,942 miles (17,610 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Kauhajoki Airfield (KHJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Kauhajoki Airfield (KHJ) is Seinäjoki Airport (SJY), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) NE of KHJ.
• In addition to being known as "Kauhajoki Airfield", another name for KHJ is "Kauhajoen lentokenttä".
• Because of Kauhajoki Airfield's relatively low elevation of 407 feet, planes can take off or land at Kauhajoki Airfield 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.