Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Louisville, Kentucky, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RCA to LOU:
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- About this route
- RCA Airport Information
- LOU Airport Information
- Facts about RCA
- Facts about LOU
- 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 LOU
- List of Nearest Airports to LOU
- Map of Furthest Airports from LOU
- List of Furthest Airports from LOU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Bowman Field (LOU), Louisville, Kentucky, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 991 miles (or 1,595 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 Bowman Field, 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: | LOU / KLOU |
| Airport Name: | Bowman Field |
| Location: | Louisville, Kentucky, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 38°13'41"N by 85°39'48"W |
| Area Served: | Louisville, Kentucky |
| Operator/Owner: | Louisville Regional Airport Authority (LRAA) |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 546 feet (166 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from LOU |
| More Information: | LOU Maps & Info |
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- Shortly after additional runway improvements, in July 1949, the 28 BMW began conversion from B-29s to the huge B-36 Peacemaker.
- Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
- 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.
- Military organizations periodically upgrade manpower and machines from time to time to meet new national security requirements and Ellsworth Air Force Base's organizations were no exception.
- 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.
- 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.
- An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
Facts about Bowman Field (LOU):
- Bowman Field is Kentucky's first commercial airport and is the oldest continually operating commercial airfield in North America.
- Bowman found an outlet for his enthusiasm after meeting and forming a brief partnership with Louisvillian Robert H.
- Because of Bowman Field's relatively low elevation of 546 feet, planes can take off or land at Bowman Field 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.
- Charles Lindbergh landed the Spirit of St.
- Bowman Field (LOU) has 2 runways.
- During World War II, Bowman Field was one of the nation's most important training bases as well as the nation's busiest airport.
- Bowman Field is operated by the Louisville Regional Airport Authority, which also operates Louisville International Airport.
- The closest airport to Bowman Field (LOU) is Louisville International Airport (SDF), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) SW of LOU.
- The furthest airport from Bowman Field (LOU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,243 miles (18,093 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
