Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RCA to VPS:
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- About this route
- RCA Airport Information
- VPS Airport Information
- Facts about RCA
- Facts about VPS
- 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 VPS
- List of Nearest Airports to VPS
- Map of Furthest Airports from VPS
- List of Furthest Airports from VPS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS), Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,306 miles (or 2,102 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 relatively short distance between Ellsworth Air Force Base and Northwest Florida Regional Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
| Airport Names: |
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| 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: | VPS / KVPS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Valaparaiso (near Fort Walton Beach), Florida, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 30°28'59"N by 86°31'31"W |
| Area Served: | Fort Walton Beach, Destin |
| Airport Type: | Public / Military |
| Elevation: | 87 feet (27 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from VPS |
| More Information: | VPS Maps & Info |
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
- Shortly after additional runway improvements, in July 1949, the 28 BMW began conversion from B-29s to the huge B-36 Peacemaker.
- Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS):
- In addition to being known as "Northwest Florida Regional Airport", another name for VPS is "Eglin Air Force Base".
- The furthest airport from Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,174 miles (17,983 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- The closest airport to Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) is Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport (DSI), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) SSE of VPS.
- Because of Northwest Florida Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 87 feet, planes can take off or land at Northwest Florida Regional 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.
- Access to the terminal is off of State Road 85.
- Northwest Florida Regional Airport (VPS) has 2 runways.
