Nonstop flight route between Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kuching International Airport (KCH), Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,755 miles (or 12,480 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 Kuching 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 Kuching 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Kuching International Airport (KCH):

• In addition to being known as "Kuching International Airport", another name for KCH is "Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuching 古晋国际机场".
• The furthest airport from Kuching International Airport (KCH) is Ipiranga Airport (IPG), which is nearly antipodal to Kuching International Airport (meaning Kuching International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ipiranga Airport), and is located 12,406 miles (19,965 kilometers) away in Santo Antônio do Içá, Amazonas, Brazil.
• The airport was built by the British Government of Sarawak in the 1940s on the outskirts of Kuching town.
• Kuching International Airport (KCH) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Sarawak Government is working closely with Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia to rationalise long-haul flights.
• Kuching International Airport handled 4,871,036 passengers last year.
• In 1980, consistent with the advent of Airbus A300B4 operations, it was imperative that the runway pavement strength be upgraded to meet the requirements of that particular aircraft.
• Because of Kuching International Airport's relatively low elevation of 89 feet, planes can take off or land at Kuching 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.
• As one of the two states in Malaysia which controls its own immigration autonomy, Sarawak exercises special regulation upon arriving and departing from all Sarawakian airports including Kuching.
• As a result of the increasing number of passengers going into and out of Kuching, a completely new and larger terminal was needed.
• The closest airport to Kuching International Airport (KCH) is Sematan Airport (BSE), which is located 61 miles (98 kilometers) SW of KCH.

Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):

• 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.
• The Washington National Guard 66th Aviation Brigade trains at Grey AAF and provides transportation support for fighting wildfires.
• 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.
• The 91st Observation Squadron and aircraft of the 3rd Balloon Squadron operated out of the Fort Lewis airfield.
• GAAF units have served in Iraq with Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, returning from a 15 month deployment on April 17, 2004.
• After the Korean War, the 2d Aviation Company, of the 2d Infantry Division, which had been the first helicopter unit in Korea, returned to Fort Lewis with observation/spotter aircraft L-19 Bird Dogs, and L-20 Beavers, as well as H-23 Raven helicopters.
• In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
• 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.
• Camp Lewis advocates pushed for it to be a major dirigible and fixed-wing field.