Nonstop flight route between São José dos Campos, Brazil and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (SJK), São José dos Campos, Brazil and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,892 miles (or 9,482 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 São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport and Ellsworth Air Force Base, 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 São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport and Ellsworth Air Force Base. 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 São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (SJK):

• In addition to being known as "São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport", another name for SJK is "Aeroporto de São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf".
• The passenger terminal has a capacity for 90,000/year and is served by a snack bar, taxis and public telephones.
• The closest airport to São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (SJK) is São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governador André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) WSW of SJK.
• The furthest airport from São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (SJK) is Minami-Daito Airport (MMD), which is nearly antipodal to São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (meaning São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Minami-Daito Airport), and is located 12,182 miles (19,604 kilometers) away in Minami Daito, Okinawa, Japan.
• São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport (SJK) currently has only 1 runway.
• Operated by Infraero, the airport shares some facilities with the Brazilian General Command for Aerospace Technology, Embraer and the flying club of São José dos Campos.
• São José dos Campos-Professor Urbano Ernesto Stumpf Airport handled 160,229 passengers last year.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
• On 1 June 1971, SAC deactivated the 821st Strategic Aerospace Division and by October of that year, an upgraded LGM-30F Minuteman II also replaced the Minuteman I missiles.
• The 740th AC&W Squadron began operations in 1955 with AN/MPS-7 search radar, and initially the station functioned as a Ground-Control Intercept and warning station.
• 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.
• 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.
• In March 1944, heavy bomber operational training ended and the 225th Army Air Force Base Unit began training of replacement personnel for deployed heavy bombardment units in the overseas combat theaters.
• The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.