Nonstop flight route between Upington, South Africa and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
(28°24'3"S by 21°15'34"E)
Arrival Airport:
(44°8'47"N by 103°4'28"W)
Distance from UTN to RCA:
9,218.15 miles (14,835.14 km)
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- UTN Airport Information
- RCA Airport Information
- Facts about UTN
- Facts about RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to UTN
- List of Nearest Airports to UTN
- Map of Furthest Airports from UTN
- List of Furthest Airports from UTN
- Map of Nearest Airports to RCA
- List of Nearest Airports to RCA
- Map of Furthest Airports from RCA
- List of Furthest Airports from RCA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Upington Airport (UTN), Upington, South Africa and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,218 miles (or 14,835 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 Upington 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 Upington 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:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | UTN / FAUP |
| Airport Name: | Upington Airport |
| Location: | Upington, South Africa |
| GPS Coordinates: | 28°24'3"S by 21°15'34"E |
| Area Served: | Upington, Northern Cape |
| Airport Type: | Public (International for Cargo only) |
| Elevation: | 2791 feet (851 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from UTN |
| More Information: | UTN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
| Airport Names: |
|
| Location: | Rapid City, South Dakota, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 44°8'47"N by 103°4'28"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from RCA |
| More Information: | RCA Maps & Info |
Facts about Upington Airport (UTN):
- The closest airport to Upington Airport (UTN) is Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of UTN.
- The furthest airport from Upington Airport (UTN) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is nearly antipodal to Upington Airport (meaning Upington Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Princeville Airport), and is located 12,007 miles (19,323 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
- From August 1976 to December 1996, South African Airways made use of Upington as a refuelling station for two weekly scheduled Boeing 747 flights to London and Zurich.
- Upington Airport (UTN) has 3 runways.
- Upington Airport was opened in 1968 as Pierre van Ryneveld Airport.
- With the fall of the Portuguese regime in Angola, South African Airways lost its landing rights in Luanda.
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.
- 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 mission of the 28th Bomb Wing is to deliver decisive combat power for global response.
- An Army Air-Defense Command Post was established at Ellsworth in 1960 for Nike missile command-and-control functions.
- 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.
- Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 146.66 miles (236.03 km) ENE | Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH) | Kuruman, South Africa |     |
| 2 | 155.89 miles (250.89 km) W | Karasburg Airport (KAS) | Karasburg, Namibia | |
| 3 | 160.04 miles (257.56 km) WSW | Wild Coast Sun Airport (MZF) | Mzamba, South Africa | |
| 4 | 160.05 miles (257.58 km) WSW | Aggeneys Airport (AGZ) | Aggeneys, South Africa | |
| 5 | 214.34 miles (344.94 km) E | Kimberley Airport (KIM) | Kimberley, South Africa | |
| 6 | 231.91 miles (373.22 km) WNW | Keetmanshoop Airport (KMP) | Keetmanshoop, Namibia | |
| 7 | 266.79 miles (429.36 km) WSW | Kleinsee Airport (KLZ) | Kleinzee, South Africa | |
| 8 | 287.18 miles (462.18 km) W | Alexander Bay Airport (ALJ) | Alexander Bay, South Africa | |
| 9 | 306.36 miles (493.03 km) N | Hukuntsi Airport (HUK) | Hukuntsi, Botswana | |
| 10 | 309.26 miles (497.71 km) E | Bloemfontein International Airport (BFN) | Bloemfontein, Free State, South Africa | |
| 11 | 318.65 miles (512.81 km) ENE | Mafikeng Airport (MBD) | Mmabatho, South Africa | |
| 12 | 337.98 miles (543.92 km) NE | Jwaneng Airport (JWA) | Jwaneng, Botswana | |
| 13 | 352.72 miles (567.65 km) NE | Lobatse Airport (LOQ) | Lobatse, Botswana | |
| 14 | 373.91 miles (601.74 km) ESE | Mafeteng Airport (MFC) | Mafeteng, Lesotho | |
| 15 | 387.10 miles (622.97 km) WNW | Lüderitz Airport (LUD) | Luderitz, Namibia | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 12,006.72 miles (19,322.89 km) N | Princeville Airport (HPV) | Hanalei, Hawaii, United States | |
| 2 | 11,991.30 miles (19,298.08 km) N | Lihue Airport (LIH) | Lihue, Hawaii, United States | |
| 3 | 11,991.29 miles (19,298.07 km) N | PMRF Barking Sands (BKH) | Kekaha, Hawaii, United States | |
| 4 | 11,984.18 miles (19,286.62 km) N | Port Allen Airport (PAK) | Hanapepe, Hawaii, United States | |
| 5 | 11,964.24 miles (19,254.54 km) N | Dillingham Airfield (HDH) | Mokuleia, Hawaii, United States | |
| 6 | 11,956.91 miles (19,242.74 km) N | Wheeler AAF (HHI) | Wahiawa, Hawaii, United States | |
| 7 | 11,944.87 miles (19,223.35 km) N | Kalaeloa Airport (NAX) | Kapolei, Hawaii, United States | |
| 8 | 11,944.77 miles (19,223.20 km) N | Honolulu International Airport (HNL) | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | |
| 9 | 11,944.77 miles (19,223.20 km) N | Hickam Field (HIK) | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | |
| 10 | 11,927.84 miles (19,195.94 km) NNW | Kalaupapa Airport (LUP) | Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States | |
| 11 | 11,925.50 miles (19,192.19 km) NNW | Molokai Airport (MKK) | Kaunakakai, Hawaii, United States | |
| 12 | 11,906.78 miles (19,162.06 km) NNW | Kapalua Airport (JHM) | Lahaina, Hawaii, United States | |
| 13 | 11,898.77 miles (19,149.17 km) NNW | Lanai Airport (LNY) | Lanai City, Hawaii, United States | |
| 14 | 11,898.56 miles (19,148.83 km) NNW | Kahului Airport (OGG) | Kahului, Hawaii, United States | |
| 15 | 11,884.17 miles (19,125.67 km) NNW | Hana Airport (HNM) | Hana, Hawaii, United States | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 7.04 miles (11.33 km) S | Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) | Rapid City, South Dakota, United States | |
| 2 | 41.93 miles (67.49 km) WNW | Black Hills Airport (SPF) | Spearfish, South Dakota, United States | |
| 3 | 82.62 miles (132.96 km) SSE | Pine Ridge Airport (XPR) | Pine Ridge, South Dakota, United States | |
| 4 | 90.44 miles (145.55 km) S | Chadron Municipal Airport (CDR) | Chadron, Nebraska, United States | |
| 5 | 122.78 miles (197.60 km) W | Gillette–Campbell County Airport (GCC) | Gillette, Wyoming, United States | |
| 6 | 138.94 miles (223.59 km) E | Pierre Regional Airport (PIR) | Pierre, South Dakota, United States | |
| 7 | 142.03 miles (228.58 km) N | Bowman Municipal Airport (BWM) | Bowman, North Dakota, United States | |
| 8 | 145.26 miles (233.77 km) S | Alliance Municipal Airport (AIA) | Alliance, Nebraska, United States | |
| 9 | 148.71 miles (239.33 km) SW | Converse County Airport (DGW) | Douglas, Wyoming, United States | |
| 10 | 153.78 miles (247.49 km) SSW | Torrington Municipal Airport (TOR) | Torrington, Wyoming, United States | |
| 11 | 154.79 miles (249.12 km) SE | Miller Field (VTN) | Valentine, Nebraska, United States | |
| 12 | 159.20 miles (256.21 km) S | Western Nebraska Regional Airport (BFF) | Scottsbluff, Nebraska, United States | |
| 13 | 162.60 miles (261.68 km) NE | Mobridge Municipal Airport (MBG) | Mobridge, South Dakota, United States | |
| 14 | 183.63 miles (295.52 km) N | Dickinson Theodore Roosevelt Regional Airport (DIK) | Dickinson, North Dakota, United States | |
| 15 | 188.89 miles (303.99 km) SE | Ainsworth Regional Airport (ANW) | Ainsworth, Nebraska, United States | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 10,579.32 miles (17,025.72 km) SSE | Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG) | Rodrigues Island, Mauritius | |
| 2 | 10,460.72 miles (16,834.85 km) SE | Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (MRU) | Plaisance, Mauritius | |
| 3 | 10,437.71 miles (16,797.83 km) SE | Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE) | Saint-Pierre, Réunion | |
| 4 | 10,415.77 miles (16,762.51 km) SE | Roland Garros Airport (RUN) | St Denis, Réunion, France | |
| 5 | 10,301.11 miles (16,577.99 km) ESE | Tôlanaro Airport (FTU) | Tôlanaro, Madagascar | |
| 6 | 10,292.17 miles (16,563.61 km) W | Margaret River Airport (MGV) | Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 7 | 10,268.77 miles (16,525.95 km) W | Busselton Regional Airport (BQB) | Busselton, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 8 | 10,252.53 miles (16,499.80 km) W | Manjimup Airport (MJP) | Manjimup, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 9 | 10,244.09 miles (16,486.22 km) W | Bunbury Airport (BUY) | Bunbury, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 10 | 10,200.19 miles (16,415.58 km) W | Rottnest Airport (RTS) | Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 11 | 10,193.03 miles (16,404.05 km) W | Albany Airport (ALH) | Albany, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 12 | 10,186.88 miles (16,394.16 km) W | Jandakot Airport (JAD) | Jandakot, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 13 | 10,186.40 miles (16,393.38 km) ESE | Ampanihy Airport (AMP) | Ampanihy, Madagascar | |
| 14 | 10,176.73 miles (16,377.83 km) W | Perth Airport (PER) | Perth, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 15 | 10,162.30 miles (16,354.60 km) SE | Mananjary Airport (MNJ) | Mananjary, Madagascar | |