Nonstop flight route between Koumac, New Caledonia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from KOC to GRF:
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- About this route
- KOC Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about KOC
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to KOC
- List of Nearest Airports to KOC
- Map of Furthest Airports from KOC
- List of Furthest Airports from KOC
- 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 Koumac Airport (KOC), Koumac, New Caledonia and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,505 miles (or 10,468 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 Koumac 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 Koumac 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: | KOC / NWWK |
| Airport Name: | Koumac Airport |
| Location: | Koumac, New Caledonia |
| GPS Coordinates: | 20°32'33"S by 164°15'33"E |
| Area Served: | Koumac, New Caledonia |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 138 feet (42 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from KOC |
| More Information: | KOC 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 Koumac Airport (KOC):
- Because of Koumac Airport's relatively low elevation of 138 feet, planes can take off or land at Koumac 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.
- The closest airport to Koumac Airport (KOC) is Koné Airport (KNQ), which is located 51 miles (83 kilometers) SE of KOC.
- Koumac Airport (KOC) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Koumac Airport (KOC) is Nouadhibou International Airport (NDB), which is nearly antipodal to Koumac Airport (meaning Koumac Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Nouadhibou International Airport), and is located 12,349 miles (19,874 kilometers) away in Nouadhibou, Mauritania.
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (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.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- The 9th Cavalry Brigade in the 1980s developed air-assault strategies with their AH-1 Cobra helicopters based upon experiences learned in Vietnam.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- The Fort Lewis airfield housed observation planes.
- Used to support Fort Lewis, Army helicopters assisted with medical evacuations at Mount Rainier National Park on numerous occasions in the 1970s.
- 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.
- In 1926, the War Department observing aviation expansion overseas requested additional aviation funding.
- World War II cantonment construction involved the demolition of some of the pre-1941 buildings.
- During the Vietnam War, GAAF not only trained helicopter units, but fixed-wing aircraft units as well.
- 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.
