Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Mokhotlong, Lesotho:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Mokhotlong Airport (MKH), Mokhotlong, Lesotho would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,640 miles (or 15,514 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 Mokhotlong 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 Mokhotlong 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):

• Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• On 15 July 1945, the 225th AAFBU was inactivated and Rapid City AAB was placed on standby status as the Army Air Forces began to demobilize.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Mokhotlong Airport (MKH):

• Because of Mokhotlong Airport's high elevation of 7,200 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at MKH. Combined with a high temperature, this could make MKH a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Mokhotlong Airport (MKH) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Mokhotlong Airport (MKH) is Lebakeng Airport (LEF), which is located 49 miles (79 kilometers) SSW of MKH.
• The furthest airport from Mokhotlong Airport (MKH) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,770 miles (18,942 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.