Nonstop flight route between Rock Springs, Wyoming, United States and Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS), Rock Springs, Wyoming, United States and United States Air Force Academy (AFF), Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 285 miles (or 459 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 Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport and United States Air Force Academy, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS):

• United Airlines DC-3s landed at Rock Springs until 1952.
• Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 25,541 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 19,458 in 2009 and 20,993 in 2010.
• The closest airport to Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS) is Kemmerer Municipal Airport (EMM), which is located 79 miles (126 kilometers) WNW of RKS.
• The furthest airport from Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,864 miles (17,484 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Because of Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport's high elevation of 6,765 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at RKS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make RKS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Rock Springs–Sweetwater County Airport (RKS) has 2 runways.

Facts about United States Air Force Academy (AFF):

• The furthest airport from United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,934 miles (17,596 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The main buildings in the Cadet Area are set around a large, square pavilion known as ‘‘the Terrazzo’‘.
• Many Academy graduates of this era served with distinction in the Vietnam War.
• The United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School is a program offered to selected individuals who were not able to obtain appointments directly to the Academy.
• The effects of the anti-war movement were felt at the Academy as well.
• The Class of 1959 established many other important traditions that continue until the present.
• The closest airport to United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport (COS), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) SSE of AFF.
• Prior to the Academy's establishment, air power advocates had been pushing for a separate air force academy for decades.
• The campus of the Academy covers 18,500 acres on the east side of the Rampart Range of the Rocky Mountains, just north of Colorado Springs.