Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Bangkok, Thailand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBK), Bangkok, Thailand would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,168 miles (or 13,146 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 Suvarnabhumi 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 Suvarnabhumi 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):

• 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 12th Air Division moved to Ellsworth on 15 July 1988.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 740th AC&W Squadron began operations in 1955 with AN/MPS-7 search radar, and initially the station functioned as a Ground-Control Intercept and warning station.
• Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.

Facts about Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBK):

• Suvarnabhumi was officially opened for limited domestic flight service on 15 September 2006, and opened for most domestic and all international commercial flights on 28 September 2006.
• In addition to being known as "Suvarnabhumi Airport", other names for NBK include "ท่าอากาศยานสุวรรณภูมิ" and "BKK".
• The furthest airport from Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBK) is Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM), which is nearly antipodal to Suvarnabhumi Airport (meaning Suvarnabhumi Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Jorge Chávez International Airport), and is located 12,252 miles (19,718 kilometers) away in Callao (near Lima), Peru.
• Airports of Thailand found that the cost of fixing 60 identified problems at the airport would be less than 1% of the total airline cost and the problems could be fixed in up to four to five years.
• The airport was due to open in late 2005, but a series of budget overruns, construction flaws, and allegations of corruption plagued the project.
• The Engineering Institute of Thailand sent a formal warning to the AoT in November 2006 about the urgent need to drain water from beneath the tarmac, and the need for immediate action.
• Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBK) has 2 runways.
• Symbolic first test flights involving two Thai Airways aircraft were held on 29 September 2005, a previously announced deadline for opening.
• Because of Suvarnabhumi Airport's relatively low elevation of 5 feet, planes can take off or land at Suvarnabhumi 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 closest airport to Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBK) is Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of NBK.