Nonstop flight route between Ko Samui, Surat Thani, Thailand and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Samui International Airport (USM), Ko Samui, Surat Thani, Thailand and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,454 miles (or 13,605 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 Samui International 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 Samui International 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 Samui International Airport (USM):

• Because of Samui International Airport's relatively low elevation of 64 feet, planes can take off or land at Samui International 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.
• The closest airport to Samui International Airport (USM) is Surat Thani International Airport (URT), which is located 69 miles (112 kilometers) WSW of USM.
• The furthest airport from Samui International Airport (USM) is Teniente FAP Jaime Montreuil Morales Airport (CHM), which is nearly antipodal to Samui International Airport (meaning Samui International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Teniente FAP Jaime Montreuil Morales Airport), and is located 12,337 miles (19,854 kilometers) away in Chimbote, Ancash Region, Peru.
• Samui International Airport (USM) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Samui International Airport", another name for USM is "ท่าอากาศยานสมุย".

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
• 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.
• Ellsworth's population of approximately 8,000 includes military members, family members and civilian employees.
• 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 October 1960, Ellsworth entered the "Space Age," with the activation of the 850th Strategic Missile Squadron, initially assigned to the 28 BMW.