Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Petropavl, Kazakhstan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Petropavl Airport (PPK), Petropavl, Kazakhstan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,587 miles (or 8,991 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 Petropavl 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 Petropavl 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.
• 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.
• In March 1944, heavy bomber operational training ended and the 225th Army Air Force Base Unit began training of replacement personnel for deployed heavy bombardment units in the overseas combat theaters.
• Air Defense Command deactivated the Ellsworth radar site on 15 August 1962 and the 740th was discontinued.
• 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.

Facts about Petropavl Airport (PPK):

• Petropavl Airport (PPK) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Petropavl Airport", another name for PPK is "Petropavlovsk Airport".
• The furthest airport from Petropavl Airport (PPK) is Teniente Julio Gallardo Airfield (PNT), which is located 10,859 miles (17,475 kilometers) away in Puerto Natales, Chile.
• The closest airport to Petropavl Airport (PPK) is Kokshetau Airport (KOV), which is located 101 miles (163 kilometers) S of PPK.
• Because of Petropavl Airport's relatively low elevation of 456 feet, planes can take off or land at Petropavl 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.