Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (TSA), Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,884 miles (or 11,079 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 Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan 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 Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan 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):

• 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.
• Shortly after additional runway improvements, in July 1949, the 28 BMW began conversion from B-29s to the huge B-36 Peacemaker.
• 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".
• Ellsworth Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 10 miles northeast of Rapid City, South Dakota just north of Box Elder, South Dakota.
• Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.
• 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.
• Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.

Facts about Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (TSA):

• Because of Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport)'s relatively low elevation of 18 feet, planes can take off or land at Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan 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.
• Due to the introduction of cross-strait flights and future international potential, the airport is undergoing extensive renovations, the first phase of which is expected to be completed by October 2010.
• Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (TSA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Regular cross-strait charter flights to mainland China started on 4 July 2008, with Songshan receiving the majority of flights.
• In addition to being known as "Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport)", other names for TSA include "台北國際航空站台北松山機場" and "Táiběi Guójì HángkōngzhànTáiběi Sōngshān Jīchǎng".
• On 6 March 2009, Japan and Taiwan signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the revision of Taiwan-Japan bilateral traffic.
• The furthest airport from Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (TSA) is Clorinda Airport (CLX), which is nearly antipodal to Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (meaning Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Clorinda Airport), and is located 12,389 miles (19,939 kilometers) away in Clorinda, Formosa, Argentina.
• On 14 June 2010, direct flights between Taipei-Songshan and Shanghai-Hongqiao began.
• The closest airport to Taipei International Airport (Taipei Songshan Airport) (TSA) is Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE), which is located 21 miles (33 kilometers) W of TSA.