Nonstop flight route between Sembach, Germany and Pierre, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX), Sembach, Germany and Pierre Regional Airport (PIR), Pierre, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,643 miles (or 7,472 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 Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base and Pierre Regional 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 Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base and Pierre Regional 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 Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX):

• Many workers were brought in to build the new base, and the village of Sembach took on the character of a boomtown.
• As part of the general withdrawal of French occupation forces from the left bank of the Rhine in 1930, the French abandoned the airfield on June 15, 1930.
• The third and final phase of construction at Sembach Air Base was conducted in the summer of 1954 when the housing area was built.
• The furthest airport from Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,992 miles (19,299 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX) is Ramstein Air Base (RMS), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of SEX.
• Sembach's origins date back to 1919 after World War I when French occupation troops used the eastern half of the present flightline as an airfield.
• During the Cold War, Sembach Air Base housed a variety of USAF Tactical Reconnaissance, Close Air Support and Tactical Air Control units as a front line NATO air base.
• Another reason for the move to France was the unsuitability of Sembach's runway, which was barely adequate for the RF-84, but absolutely unsuitable for the higher performance RF-101 aircraft

Facts about Pierre Regional Airport (PIR):

• Pierre Regional Airport (PIR) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Pierre Regional Airport (PIR) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,493 miles (16,887 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Pierre Regional Airport covers 1,735 acres at an elevation of 1,744 feet above mean sea level.
• In addition to being known as "Pierre Regional Airport", another name for PIR is "Pierre Army Airfield".
• The closest airport to Pierre Regional Airport (PIR) is Mobridge Municipal Airport (MBG), which is located 81 miles (130 kilometers) N of PIR.
• A new terminal has been designed, and construction began in late Spring, 2011.
• During World War II the airfield was used by the United States Army Air Forces by Air Technical Service Command as a maintenance and supply depot.