Nonstop flight route between Portland, Victoria, Australia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from PTJ to TCM:
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- About this route
- PTJ Airport Information
- TCM Airport Information
- Facts about PTJ
- Facts about TCM
- Map of Nearest Airports to PTJ
- List of Nearest Airports to PTJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from PTJ
- List of Furthest Airports from PTJ
- Map of Nearest Airports to TCM
- List of Nearest Airports to TCM
- Map of Furthest Airports from TCM
- List of Furthest Airports from TCM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Portland Airport (PTJ), Portland, Victoria, Australia and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,341 miles (or 13,423 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 Portland Airport and McChord Field/McChord AFB, 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 Portland Airport and McChord Field/McChord AFB. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | PTJ / YPOD |
Airport Name: | Portland Airport |
Location: | Portland, Victoria, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°19'5"S by 141°28'15"E |
Operator/Owner: | Glenelg Shire Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 265 feet (81 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from PTJ |
More Information: | PTJ Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | TCM / KTCM |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Tacoma, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°8'16"N by 122°28'35"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military: Air Force Base |
Elevation: | 322 feet (98 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from TCM |
More Information: | TCM Maps & Info |
Facts about Portland Airport (PTJ):
- Because of Portland Airport's relatively low elevation of 265 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland Airport 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.
- The furthest airport from Portland Airport (PTJ) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Portland Airport (meaning Portland Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,031 miles (19,363 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
- The closest airport to Portland Airport (PTJ) is Warrnambool Airport (WMB), which is located 53 miles (85 kilometers) E of PTJ.
- Portland Airport (PTJ) has 2 runways.
Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
- Because of McChord Field/McChord AFB's relatively low elevation of 322 feet, planes can take off or land at McChord Field/McChord AFB 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.
- The closest airport to McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) is Gray Army Airfield (GRF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) SW of TCM.
- In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
- The base was the location of the first of twenty-eight stations built by ADC as part of the permanent air defense radar network, and was the top-priority site for ADC radars.
- The 325th Fighter Group operated two squadrons of F-82F Twin Mustangs from McChord between 1948 and 1950, the first postwar fighter optimized for the air defense interceptor mission.
- The furthest airport from McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,803 miles (17,386 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Today, the successor organization to the 25th AD, the Western Air Defense Sector, is a major tenant organization at McChord, being one of two air defense sectors responsible for the security and integrity of continental United States air space.
- In 1917, the citizens of Pierce County, Washington approved a bond measure for $2,000,000 to buy 70,000 acres of land to be donated to the Federal Government for use as a military reservation.
- In 1940 McChord Field became the headquarters of the GHQ Air Force Northwest Air District, with a mission for the defense of the Pacific Northwest and Upper Great Plains regions of the United States.