Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Rapid City, South Dakota, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to RAP:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- RAP Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about RAP
- Map of Nearest Airports to FFD
- List of Nearest Airports to FFD
- Map of Furthest Airports from FFD
- List of Furthest Airports from FFD
- Map of Nearest Airports to RAP
- List of Nearest Airports to RAP
- Map of Furthest Airports from RAP
- List of Furthest Airports from RAP
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP), Rapid City, South Dakota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,333 miles (or 6,974 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 RAF Fairford and Rapid City Regional Airport, 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 RAF Fairford and Rapid City Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FFD / EGVA |
Airport Name: | RAF Fairford |
Location: | Fairford, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°40'55"N by 1°47'24"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from FFD |
More Information: | FFD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RAP / KRAP |
Airport Name: | Rapid City Regional Airport |
Location: | Rapid City, South Dakota, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 44°2'43"N by 103°3'25"W |
Area Served: | Rapid City, South Dakota |
Operator/Owner: | City of Rapid City |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 3204 feet (977 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from RAP |
More Information: | RAP Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
- On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
- The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
- On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
- The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
- In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
- Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
Facts about Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP):
- The closest airport to Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) is Ellsworth Air Force Base (RCA), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) N of RAP.
- The furthest airport from Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,585 miles (17,035 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) has 2 runways.