Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Aranuka, Kiribati:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GRF to AAK:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- GRF Airport Information
- AAK Airport Information
- Facts about GRF
- Facts about AAK
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRF
- List of Nearest Airports to GRF
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRF
- List of Furthest Airports from GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to AAK
- List of Nearest Airports to AAK
- Map of Furthest Airports from AAK
- List of Furthest Airports from AAK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Aranuka Airport (AAK), Aranuka, Kiribati would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,999 miles (or 8,045 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 Gray Army Airfield and Aranuka Airport, 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 Gray Army Airfield and Aranuka Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRF / KGRF |
Airport Names: |
|
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 |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | AAK / NGUK |
Airport Name: | Aranuka Airport |
Location: | Aranuka, Kiribati |
GPS Coordinates: | 0°11'7"N by 173°38'11"E |
Area Served: | Aranuka |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 6 feet (2 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from AAK |
More Information: | AAK Maps & Info |
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- 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.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- 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.
- August 1984 saw GAAF become one of few test centers for the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters.
- Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
- The Fort Lewis airfield housed observation planes.
- 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.
- During the Korean War, GAAF continued in the role as a training and division support field.
Facts about Aranuka Airport (AAK):
- The furthest airport from Aranuka Airport (AAK) is Cape Palmas Airport (CPA), which is nearly antipodal to Aranuka Airport (meaning Aranuka Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cape Palmas Airport), and is located 12,108 miles (19,486 kilometers) away in Cape Palmas, Liberia.
- The closest airport to Aranuka Airport (AAK) is Abemama Atoll Airport (AEA), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NNE of AAK.
- Because of Aranuka Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Aranuka 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.