Nonstop flight route between Ketchikan, Alaska, United States and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WFB to RCA:
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- About this route
- WFB Airport Information
- RCA Airport Information
- Facts about WFB
- Facts about RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to WFB
- List of Nearest Airports to WFB
- Map of Furthest Airports from WFB
- List of Furthest Airports from WFB
- 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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB), Ketchikan, Alaska, United States and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,477 miles (or 2,377 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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base and Ellsworth Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | WFB / |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Ketchikan, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 55°20'39"N by 131°39'47"W |
Area Served: | Ketchikan, Alaska |
Airport Type: | Public use |
Elevation: | 0 feet (0 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from WFB |
More Information: | WFB Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RCA / KRCA |
Airport Names: |
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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 Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB):
- Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base has one seaplane landing area designated NW/SE which measures 10,000 x 1,500 ft.
- The furthest airport from Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 10,613 miles (17,079 kilometers) away in Port Alfred, South Africa.
- The closest airport to Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) is Ketchikan International Airport (KTN), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) WNW of WFB.
- Because of Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base 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.
- Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (WFB) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base", another name for WFB is "5KE".
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- Ellsworth AFB was established in 1941 as Rapid City Army Air Base.
- 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 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 installation changed names a few more times during its early years.
- 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.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
- Rapid City AAF was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Training Wing, II Bomber Command.
- Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.