Nonstop flight route between Mackinac Island, Michigan, United States and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MCD to GRF:
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- About this route
- MCD Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about MCD
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to MCD
- List of Nearest Airports to MCD
- Map of Furthest Airports from MCD
- List of Furthest Airports from MCD
- 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 Mackinac Island Airport (MCD), Mackinac Island, Michigan, United States and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,790 miles (or 2,880 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 relatively short distance between Mackinac Island Airport and Gray Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MCD / KMCD |
| Airport Name: | Mackinac Island Airport |
| Location: | Mackinac Island, Michigan, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 45°51'54"N by 84°38'13"W |
| Area Served: | Mackinac Island, Michigan |
| Operator/Owner: | Mackinac Island State Park Commission |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 739 feet (225 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MCD |
| More Information: | MCD 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 Mackinac Island Airport (MCD):
- Because of Mackinac Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 739 feet, planes can take off or land at Mackinac Island 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.
- Mackinac Island Airport was activated in 1940.
- The furthest airport from Mackinac Island Airport (MCD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,111 miles (17,881 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Mackinac Island Airport (MCD) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Mackinac Island Airport (MCD) is Pellston Regional Airport of Emmet County (PLN), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSW of MCD.
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.
- During the Vietnam War, GAAF not only trained helicopter units, but fixed-wing aircraft units as well.
- The Fort Lewis airfield housed observation planes.
- 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.
- During the Korean War, GAAF continued in the role as a training and division support field.
- Camp Lewis advocates pushed for it to be a major dirigible and fixed-wing field.
- The field is named in honor of Captain Lawrence C.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- Since 2005 the field has been experiencing another major expansion.
- 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.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
