Nonstop flight route between Moorabbin, Victoria, Australia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MBW to GRF:
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- About this route
- MBW Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about MBW
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to MBW
- List of Nearest Airports to MBW
- Map of Furthest Airports from MBW
- List of Furthest Airports from MBW
- 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 Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (MBW), Moorabbin, Victoria, Australia and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,166 miles (or 13,141 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 Moorabbin Harry Hawker 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 Moorabbin Harry Hawker 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: | MBW / YMMB |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Moorabbin, Victoria, Australia |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°58'32"S by 145°6'7"E |
| Area Served: | Melbourne |
| Operator/Owner: | Moorabbin Airport Corporation |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 50 feet (15 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 5 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MBW |
| More Information: | MBW 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 Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (MBW):
- Moorabbin Airport was renamed to Moorabbin Airport on 22 January 1989.
- The furthest airport from Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (MBW) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (meaning Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,209 miles (19,649 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
- Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (MBW) has 5 runways.
- The closest airport to Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport (MBW) is Essendon Airport (MEB), which is located 20 miles (33 kilometers) NNW of MBW.
- In 2006 Moorabbin Airport was named "Australian Regional Airport of the Year"
- In addition to being known as "Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport", other names for MBW include "Harry Hawker Airport" and "Melbourne/Moorabbin Airport".
- Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport handled 9,766 passengers last year.
- Because of Moorabbin Harry Hawker Airport's relatively low elevation of 50 feet, planes can take off or land at Moorabbin Harry Hawker 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 Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- The field is named in honor of Captain Lawrence C.
- The 1938 construction included two paved runways, a boiler plant, headquarters building, metal balloon hangar, six-plane hangar, corrugated-iron hangar, storehouse, flight-surgeon office, and film-storage building.
- Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
- Gray Army Airfield, also known as Gray AAF, is a military airfield located within Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, in Pierce County, Washington, United States.
- 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.
- GAAF units have served in Iraq with Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, returning from a 15 month deployment on April 17, 2004.
- 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.
- 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.
- Used to support Fort Lewis, Army helicopters assisted with medical evacuations at Mount Rainier National Park on numerous occasions in the 1970s.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- 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.
