Nonstop flight route between Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Australia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lightning Ridge Airport (LHG), Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Australia and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,652 miles (or 12,315 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 Lightning Ridge 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 Lightning Ridge 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 Lightning Ridge Airport (LHG):

• Lightning Ridge Airport (LHG) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Lightning Ridge Airport (LHG) is Collarenebri Airport (CRB), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) E of LHG.
• Because of Lightning Ridge Airport's relatively low elevation of 540 feet, planes can take off or land at Lightning Ridge 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 furthest airport from Lightning Ridge Airport (LHG) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is located 11,784 miles (18,965 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.

Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):

• 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.
• Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
• The Army Air Force closed its facilities in 1947.
• In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
• In 1926, the War Department observing aviation expansion overseas requested additional aviation funding.
• 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.
• The field is named in honor of Captain Lawrence C.
• 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.
• 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.