Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Orlando, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Orlando Executive Airport (ORL), Orlando, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,611 miles (or 2,593 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 Orlando Executive Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• 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.
• To provide air defense of the base, the United States Army established the Ellsworth AFB Defense Area in 1957 and constructed Nike-Ajax Surface-to-air missile sites for air defense.
• The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.
• 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's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.

Facts about Orlando Executive Airport (ORL):

• Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) has 2 runways.
• By the early 1960s development around the airport had made airport expansion unlikely.
• The furthest airport from Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,503 miles (18,513 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Orlando Executive Airport is a public airport three miles east of downtown Orlando, in Orange County, Florida.
• Opened in 1928 as the Orlando Municipal Airport, the airport was the first commercial airport in central Florida.
• In 1943 the AAFSAT began training units in Night Fighter operations.
• With the lessening of the U-Boat threat, Orlando AAB became the home of the Army Air Force School of Applied Tactics and subsequently as the Army Air Forces Tactical Center.
• Because of Orlando Executive Airport's relatively low elevation of 113 feet, planes can take off or land at Orlando Executive 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 Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) is Orlando International Airport (MCO), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) S of ORL.