Nonstop flight route between Apataki, French Polynesia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Apataki Airport (APK), Apataki, French Polynesia and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,574 miles (or 7,362 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 Apataki 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 Apataki 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Apataki Airport (APK):

• The closest airport to Apataki Airport (APK) is Arutua Airport (AXR), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) NNW of APK.
• The furthest airport from Apataki Airport (APK) is Khartoum International Airport (KRT), which is nearly antipodal to Apataki Airport (meaning Apataki Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Khartoum International Airport), and is located 12,368 miles (19,904 kilometers) away in Khartoum, Sudan.

Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):

• Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, conducts high-altitude search-and-rescue operations.
• The Army Air Force closed its facilities in 1947.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
• Since 2005 the field has been experiencing another major expansion.
• The 91st Observation Squadron and aircraft of the 3rd Balloon Squadron operated out of the Fort Lewis airfield.
• 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.
• During the Vietnam War, GAAF not only trained helicopter units, but fixed-wing aircraft units as well.
• Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.