Nonstop flight route between Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SPN to GRF:
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- About this route
- SPN Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about SPN
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to SPN
- List of Nearest Airports to SPN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SPN
- List of Furthest Airports from SPN
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRF
- List of Nearest Airports to GRF
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRF
- List of Furthest Airports from GRF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Saipan International Airport (SPN), Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,536 miles (or 8,909 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 Saipan International Airport and Gray Army Airfield, 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 Saipan International Airport and Gray Army Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SPN / PGSN |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Saipan Island, Northern Mariana Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 15°7'8"N by 145°43'45"E |
Operator/Owner: | Commonwealth Ports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 215 feet (66 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SPN |
More Information: | SPN Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRF / KGRF |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Tacoma, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°4'45"N by 122°34'50"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 300 feet (91 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GRF |
More Information: | GRF Maps & Info |
Facts about Saipan International Airport (SPN):
- Once in American hands, Isely Field was expanded considerably to support Twentieth Air Force B-29 Superfortress operations.
- The closest airport to Saipan International Airport (SPN) is Tinian International Airport (TIQ), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SW of SPN.
- Saipan International Airport covers an area of 734 acres which contains one paved runway measuring 8,700 x 200 ft.
- With the end of the war the wing's four bomb groups were all returned to the United States, with their B-29s either being flown to Clark Air Base in the Philippines for scrapping, or were flown to storage facilities in Texas or Arizona.
- The furthest airport from Saipan International Airport (SPN) is Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho) (SSA), which is nearly antipodal to Saipan International Airport (meaning Saipan International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salvador-Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (2 de Julho)), and is located 12,125 miles (19,514 kilometers) away in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
- In addition to being known as "Saipan International Airport", other names for SPN include "Francisco C. Ada Airport" and "GSN".
- Japanese tourists began visiting Saipan in large numbers during the 1970s.
- Because of Saipan International Airport's relatively low elevation of 215 feet, planes can take off or land at Saipan International 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.
- Saipan International Airport (SPN) currently has only 1 runway.
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- In October 1921 Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny” biplanes flew from the Naval Station at Sand Point to a grass airfield at what was then called "Camp Lewis", located at a site just west of today’s Gray AAF.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- The furthest airport from Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,809 miles (17,395 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Because of Gray Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Gray Army Airfield 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.
- GAAF units have served in Iraq with Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, returning from a 15 month deployment on April 17, 2004.
- In 1926, the War Department observing aviation expansion overseas requested additional aviation funding.
- The closest airport to Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of GRF.
- During the Korean War, GAAF continued in the role as a training and division support field.
- Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.