Nonstop flight route between Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field (TCL), Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,121 miles (or 1,805 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 Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field and Ellsworth Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field (TCL):

• Runway 11/29 was paved in the early 1950s.
• Because of Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field's relatively low elevation of 170 feet, planes can take off or land at Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field 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.
• The closest airport to Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field (TCL) is George Downer Airport (AIV), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) WSW of TCL.
• During World War II, the field was revamped to include a single main runway.
• The Civil Aeronautics Administration designated van de Graff Field as an intermediate field.
• Atlantic Southeast Airlines provided daily service between Tuscaloosa and Atlanta between 1982 and June 1992.GP Express Airlines would continue service to Atlanta from June 6, 1992, through the elimination of the EAS subsidy for its operation on June 30, 1994.
• Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field (TCL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Tuscaloosa Regional AirportVan De Graaff Field (TCL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,131 miles (17,914 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• DayJet announced per seat VLJ service on two pilot planes nonstop to 14 hubs in 3 states in July 2008 from Tuscaloosa.
• Tuscaloosa Regional Airport had 2,400 commercial passenger boardings in calendar year 2011.

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.
• 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 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.
• Ellsworth's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.
• The airfield was again temporarily shut down from September 1946 – March 1947 and underwent a major construction program to upgrade the temporary wartime facilities to that of a permanent base.
• The Titan I's life span was short in western South Dakota.
• The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.