Nonstop flight route between Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States and Vancouver International Airport (YVR), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,011 miles (or 1,628 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 Vancouver International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• Ellsworth AFB is 10 miles east of Rapid City, S.D.
• An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
• The mission of the 28th Bomb Wing is to deliver decisive combat power for global response.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Air Defense Command deactivated the Ellsworth radar site on 15 August 1962 and the 740th was discontinued.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• Military organizations periodically upgrade manpower and machines from time to time to meet new national security requirements and Ellsworth Air Force Base's organizations were no exception.
• Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.

Facts about Vancouver International Airport (YVR):

• YVR is one of eight Canadian airports that has United States border preclearance facilities.
• Vancouver Airport Authority was one of the first airports in North America to institute a volunteer program in 1989.
• Because of Vancouver International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Vancouver 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.
• YVR recently completed a $1.4-billion multi-year capital development plan, which included a four-gate expansion to the International Terminal Wing, completed in June 2007.
• Low resistance carpeting and other materials such as laminate flooring have been utilized throughout the airport to make it easier for people using wheelchairs and walkers to move throughout the airport.
• The furthest airport from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,685 miles (17,196 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The International and Domestic terminals are one very large building divided into two sections, while the South terminal is located in a remote part of the airport.
• In 1927, Charles Lindbergh refused to include Vancouver in his North American tour because of the lack of a proper airport.
• The closest airport to Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Vancouver Harbour Water Airport (CXH), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) NNE of YVR.
• Vancouver International Airport (YVR) has 3 runways.