Need help booking?
Unpublished phone-only deals available
RCA to MEB: distance & flight time
Rapid City (Ellsworth Air Force Base) → Melbourne (Melbourne Essendon Airport)
8,961 mi
14,422 km · 7,787 nm
18h 2m
estimated nonstop flight time
+16h
time difference · heading west
See live RCA→MEB fares Phone-only fares on this route — call free
Flight time details
8,961 miles nonstop takes roughly 18h 2m gate to gate, flying west. Add 45–90 minutes per connection if there's no nonstop service. Remember to factor the 16-hour time gain when reading arrival times on your ticket.
The two airports
- RCA — Ellsworth Air Force Base · Rapid City, United States
- MEB — Melbourne Essendon Airport · Melbourne, Australia
Distances are great-circle ("as the crow flies") — the same basis airlines use for frequent-flyer miles.
Alternate airports can cut this fare
Flying from or into a nearby airport is the #1 trick our agents use to beat online prices. Call and we'll compare every combination on one call.
Near RCA
- RAP · Rapid City Regional Airport7 mi away
- SPF · Black Hills Airport-Clyde Ice Field41 mi away
- CDR · Chadron Municipal Airport90 mi away
- GCC · Gillette Campbell County Airport121 mi away
Near MEB
- MEL · Melbourne International Airport5 mi away
- MBW · Melbourne Moorabbin Airport20 mi away
- AVV · Avalon Airport32 mi away
- GEX · Geelong Airport46 mi away
Frequently asked questions
How far is RCA from MEB?
The flight distance from Rapid City (RCA) to Melbourne (MEB) is 8,961 miles (14,422 km, 7,787 nautical miles), measured along the great-circle route airlines actually fly.
How long is the flight from RCA to MEB?
A nonstop flight takes about 18h 2m gate to gate. Actual time varies with winds, routing and season — eastbound transatlantic flights, for example, are usually faster than the return.
What is the time difference between Rapid City and Melbourne?
Melbourne is 16 hours ahead of Rapid City.
What is the cheapest way to fly from RCA to MEB?
Compare live fares online, then call CheapoTrav — our agents have unpublished consolidator fares on RCA–MEB that never appear on search engines, with no booking fees.