Nonstop flight route between Warton, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Warton Aerodrome (WRT), Warton, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,207 miles (or 6,770 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 Warton Aerodrome 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 Warton Aerodrome 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 Warton Aerodrome (WRT):

• In 1940 new runways were built at Warton so that it could act as a "satellite" airfield for the RAF Coastal Command station at Squires Gate airfield in Blackpool.
• In June 2010 The Sun reported that poisonous red back spiders had been discovered in a consignment of parts from Australia.
• Because of Warton Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 55 feet, planes can take off or land at Warton Aerodrome 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.
• Warton is the base for BAE Systems' Corporate Air Travel department which operates scheduled services for employees to Farnborough, Munich, Filton, Cambridge, RAF Coningsby, and RAF Marham.
• Warton Aerodrome (WRT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airfield was first operated as an air depot of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, as thousands of aircraft were processed on their way to active service in Britain, North Africa, the Mediterranean and mainland Europe.
• The closest airport to Warton Aerodrome (WRT) is Blackpool International Airport (BLK), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WNW of WRT.
• The furthest airport from Warton Aerodrome (WRT) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,820 miles (19,022 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Since November 1994, the Lancashire Constabulary has operated a Eurocopter AS355 helicopter from Warton.

Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):

• Ellsworth Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 10 miles northeast of Rapid City, South Dakota just north of Box Elder, South Dakota.
• In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
• 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.
• Internationally, the destruction of the Berlin Wall in October 1989 symbolized the imminent demise of the Soviet Union over the next several months.
• 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.
• An AN/MPS-14 height-finder radar was added in 1956.
• The installation changed names a few more times during its early years.