Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport (LTQ), Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,495 miles (or 7,234 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 Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale 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 Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale 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):

• Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
• 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 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 AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
• The Titan I's life span was short in western South Dakota.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.
• Air Defense Command activated the 740th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron at Rapid City AFB on 1 February 1953 under the ADC 31st Air Division.

Facts about Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport (LTQ):

• In addition to being known as "Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport", another name for LTQ is "Aéroport de Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale".
• Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport (LTQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Le Touquet airport is featured in the Microsoft Flight Simulator X mission Blind Across The Channel, in which the player flies a Cessna 172 from Manston Airport in Kent, UK on a foggy day using IFR.
• Because of Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale 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 furthest airport from Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport (LTQ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,965 miles (19,256 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Le Touquet - Côte d'Opale Airport (LTQ) is Aerodrome Abbeville (XAB), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) SSE of LTQ.