Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Río Grande, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Hermes Quijada International Airport (RGA), Río Grande, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,080 miles (or 11,394 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 Hermes Quijada 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 Hermes Quijada 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 installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
• 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 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.
• On 1 June 1992, as part of the first major reorganization since the creation of USAF, the Air Force inactivated Strategic Air Command and assigned Ellsworth's organizations ) to the newly activated Air Combat Command.
• 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.
• Ellsworth's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".

Facts about Hermes Quijada International Airport (RGA):

• The furthest airport from Hermes Quijada International Airport (RGA) is Chita Kadala (HTA), which is nearly antipodal to Hermes Quijada International Airport (meaning Hermes Quijada International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chita Kadala), and is located 12,308 miles (19,807 kilometers) away in Chita, Russia.
• Because of Hermes Quijada International Airport's relatively low elevation of 66 feet, planes can take off or land at Hermes Quijada 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.
• Hermes Quijada International Airport (RGA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Hermes Quijada International Airport", another name for RGA is "Aeropuerto Internacional de Río Grande - Hermes Quijada".
• The closest airport to Hermes Quijada International Airport (RGA) is Ushuaia International Airport (USH), which is located 77 miles (123 kilometers) SSW of RGA.