Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Osaka, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Osaka International Airport (OSA), Osaka, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,863 miles (or 9,436 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 Osaka International 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 Osaka International 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):

• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• Ellsworth AFB is 10 miles east of Rapid City, S.D.
• 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.
• An AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
• 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.
• In March 1994, Ellsworth welcomed the 34th Bomb Squadron, a geographically separated unit that was awaiting airfield upgrades before it could return to its parent organization, the 366th Wing, at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.

Facts about Osaka International Airport (OSA):

• Because of Osaka International Airport's relatively low elevation of 39 feet, planes can take off or land at Osaka International 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.
• There were originally plans to close Itami Airport following the opening of Kansai, but nearby communities opposed such a move for economic reasons, so Itami was retained as a domestic-only airport after Kansai opened in 1994.
• The closest airport to Osaka International Airport (OSA) is Osaka International Airport (ITM), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of OSA.
• Jet flights at Itami began on June 1, 1964, and triggered complaints by neighboring residents about noise pollution.
• Itami was renamed Osaka Airport following its return to Japanese control in March 1959.
• In addition to being known as "Osaka International Airport", other names for OSA include "Itami International Airport", "大阪国際空港", "Ōsaka Kokusai Kūkō", "ITM" and "RJOO".
• Osaka International Airport (OSA) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Osaka International Airport (OSA) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Itami Airport has a single terminal building with 21 gates, divided into a "North Terminal" for JAL and Amakusa and "South Terminal" for ANA and IBEX.
• The policy of the Japanese government has been to limit operations at Itami in order to spur development at Kansai and Kobe.