Nonstop flight route between Belo sur Tsiribihina, Madagascar and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Belo sur Tsiribihina Airport (BMD), Belo sur Tsiribihina, Madagascar and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,404 miles (or 16,744 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 Belo sur Tsiribihina 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 Belo sur Tsiribihina 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Belo sur Tsiribihina Airport (BMD):

• The furthest airport from Belo sur Tsiribihina Airport (BMD) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,163 miles (17,965 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Belo sur Tsiribihina Airport (BMD) is Miandrivazo Airport (ZVA), which is located 60 miles (96 kilometers) E of BMD.
• Because of Belo sur Tsiribihina Airport's relatively low elevation of 154 feet, planes can take off or land at Belo sur Tsiribihina 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.

Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):

• Following the end of the war in Europe, McChord redeployed thousands of troops arriving from the European theater to the Pacific as part of Air Transport Command.
• Other wing components are the 62d Maintenance Group, 62d Mission Support Group and 62d Medical Squadron.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• 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.
• 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.
• The McChord Air Museum features exhibits about McChord Field and a collection of restored military aircraft.
• 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 62nd Troop Carrier Wing was reassigned to the Military Air Transport Service Continental Division on 1 July 1957 as TAC realigned its transport units.
• Starting in mid-1943 the training of B-17 and B-24 replacement crews began to be phased out, as the Second Air Force began ramping up training of B-29 Superfortress Very Heavy bomb groups, destined for Twentieth Air Force.
• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
• The 62d Operations Group flies the C-17 Globemaster III transport from McChord Field.