Nonstop flight route between Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WXF to RCA:
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- About this route
- WXF Airport Information
- RCA Airport Information
- Facts about WXF
- Facts about RCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to WXF
- List of Nearest Airports to WXF
- Map of Furthest Airports from WXF
- List of Furthest Airports from WXF
- 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 MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF), Braintree, England, United Kingdom and Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,393 miles (or 7,070 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 MDPGA Wethersfield 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 MDPGA Wethersfield 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: | WXF / EGVT |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Braintree, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°58'26"N by 0°30'21"E |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
Airport Type: | Military airfield, private airfield |
Elevation: | 322 feet (98 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from WXF |
More Information: | WXF 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 MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF):
- The group returned to the United States in July 1945 and was inactivated at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts, on 23 October 1945.
- The closest airport to MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is London Stansted Airport (STN), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) WSW of WXF.
- During the late 1940s the base was used as a winter camping ground for Chipperfield's Circus.
- The Operational Support Unit moved to Wethersfield from RAF Wittering and has been permanently based there since May 1992.
- Because of MDPGA Wethersfield's relatively low elevation of 322 feet, planes can take off or land at MDPGA Wethersfield 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.
- MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) has 3 runways.
- The fighter squadrons of the 20th had been in constant rotation since the arrival of the wing at Wethersfield in 1952.
- The furthest airport from MDPGA Wethersfield (WXF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,856 miles (19,080 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- In addition to being known as "MDPGA Wethersfield", another name for WXF is "RAF Wethersfield".
Facts about Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA):
- In October 1960, Ellsworth entered the "Space Age," with the activation of the 850th Strategic Missile Squadron, initially assigned to the 28 BMW.
- When operations resumed in 1947 the base was a new United States Air Force asset.
- 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.
- 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 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 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 host unit at Ellsworth is the 28th Bomb Wing assigned to the Air Combat Command's Twelfth Air Force.
- In addition to being known as "Ellsworth Air Force Base", another name for RCA is "Ellsworth AFB".
- On 2 January 1942, the U.S.