Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RCA to RTS:
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- About this route
- RCA Airport Information
- RTS Airport Information
- Facts about RCA
- Facts about RTS
- Map of Nearest Airports to RCA
- List of Nearest Airports to RCA
- Map of Furthest Airports from RCA
- List of Furthest Airports from RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to RTS
- List of Nearest Airports to RTS
- Map of Furthest Airports from RTS
- List of Furthest Airports from RTS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Rottnest Airport (RTS), Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,200 miles (or 16,416 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 Rottnest 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 Rottnest Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Rapid City, South Dakota, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°8'47"N by 103°4'28"W |
View all routes: | Routes from RCA |
More Information: | RCA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RTS / YRTI |
Airport Name: | Rottnest Airport |
Location: | Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°0'24"S by 115°32'22"E |
Operator/Owner: | Rottnest Island Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 12 feet (4 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from RTS |
More Information: | RTS Maps & Info |
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- On 1 June 1971, SAC deactivated the 821st Strategic Aerospace Division and by October of that year, an upgraded LGM-30F Minuteman II also replaced the Minuteman I missiles.
- On 2 January 1942, the U.S.
- Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
- An AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
- 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 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 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 installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
- Air Defense Command deactivated the Ellsworth radar site on 15 August 1962 and the 740th was discontinued.
Facts about Rottnest Airport (RTS):
- Because of Rottnest Airport's relatively low elevation of 12 feet, planes can take off or land at Rottnest 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 Rottnest Airport (RTS) is Jandakot Airport (JAD), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) ESE of RTS.
- Rottnest Airport (RTS) currently has only 1 runway.
- Woods Airways which was run by pioneer aviator Jimmy Woods, operated the Perth to Rottnest service from about 1948 with two war-surplus Royal Australian Air Force Avro Anson aircraft.
- The furthest airport from Rottnest Airport (RTS) is L.F. Wade International Airport (BDA), which is nearly antipodal to Rottnest Airport (meaning Rottnest Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from L.F. Wade International Airport), and is located 12,409 miles (19,970 kilometers) away in Ferry Reach (near Hamilton), Bermuda.
- On 12 November 2006 a light twin engine charter aircraft carrying the pilot and five passengers crashed on the edge of the salt lake adjoining the airport.