Nonstop flight route between Townsville, Queensland, Australia and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Townsville Airport (TSV), Townsville, Queensland, Australia and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,125 miles (or 13,075 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 Townsville 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 Townsville 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 Townsville Airport (TSV):

• Townsville Airport handled 1,644,089 passengers last year.
• Because of Townsville Airport's relatively low elevation of 18 feet, planes can take off or land at Townsville 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.
• Townsville International Airport is a common-use civilian and defence facility, sharing access with RAAF Base Townsville.
• The closest airport to Townsville Airport (TSV) is Charters Towers Airport (CXT), which is located 63 miles (102 kilometers) SSW of TSV.
• In April 1980, Sir Rupert Murdoch and Sir Peter Abeles, the new owners of Ansett, were petitioning the Federal Government for international flights to begin in some regional centres of Australia.
• Townsville Airport (TSV) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Townsville Airport", other names for TSV include "Garbutt Airport" and "Townsville International Airport".
• The furthest airport from Townsville Airport (TSV) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,884 miles (19,125 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• In August 2002, Qantas ceased the services to Singapore, which had been at times circuitously routed via southern airports such as Brisbane, due to lack of demand.
• In 2008 another upgrade project was completed, with an improvement of the check-in desks of the current airlines and an extra two desks built for Virgin Australia.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (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.
• 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.
• On 2 January 1942, the U.S.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• After the Army closed their facilities, the military housing at the Nike Integrated Fire Control sites was transferred to control of Ellsworth, and was used as Air Force military family housing until about 1990.
• The base experienced one of its worst peacetime tragedies in March 1953 when an RB-36 and its entire crew of 23 crashed in Newfoundland while returning from a routine exercise in Europe.
• 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.
• 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.