Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Blythe, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MCF to BLH:
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- About this route
- MCF Airport Information
- BLH Airport Information
- Facts about MCF
- Facts about BLH
- Map of Nearest Airports to MCF
- List of Nearest Airports to MCF
- Map of Furthest Airports from MCF
- List of Furthest Airports from MCF
- Map of Nearest Airports to BLH
- List of Nearest Airports to BLH
- Map of Furthest Airports from BLH
- List of Furthest Airports from BLH
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Blythe Airport (BLH), Blythe, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,945 miles (or 3,130 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Blythe Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MCF / KMCF |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Tampa, Florida, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 27°50'57"N by 82°31'15"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from MCF |
| More Information: | MCF Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | BLH / KBLH |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Blythe, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°36'52"N by 114°42'47"W |
| Area Served: | Blythe, California |
| Operator/Owner: | County of Riverside |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 399 feet (122 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from BLH |
| More Information: | BLH Maps & Info |
Facts about MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):
- Air defense of the Tampa Bay area was the mission of the 53d Pursuit Group, established at MacDIll on 15 January 1941.
- The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.
- With the United States entry into World War II, the primary mission of MacDill Field became the training of bombardment units under III Bomber Command.
- In late 1943, when Second Air Force began transitioning to B-29 Superfortress training, the B-17 mission returned to MacDill which continued through the end of World War II.
- In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
- MacDill has a total of 38 tenant units according to the official MacDill website."MacDill Air Force Base Units".
- Detachment 1 of the 23d Wing is unique in that it hosts the Deployed Unit Complex at MacDill AFB, providing flight line and logistical support for detachments of Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps tactical jet fighter and attack aircraft utilizing the nearby Avon Park Air Force Range facility, the Avon Range also being operated and maintained by Det 1, 23d Wing.
- The 6 AMW also has a collocated "Associate" wing at MacDill, the 927th Air Refueling Wing of the Air Force Reserve Command.
- In addition MacDill provided transitional training in the B-17 Flying Fortress.
- The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
- Flying operations at MacDill began in 1941 with the base's first mission being the defense of Gulf of Mexico.
Facts about Blythe Airport (BLH):
- Blythe Airport was established by the Civil Aeronautics Administration in the late 1930s as an emergency landing field on the Los Angeles to Phoenix airway.
- In addition to the main facility at Blythe, several auxiliary airfields were built.
- In addition to being known as "Blythe Airport", another name for BLH is "(former Blythe Army Air Field)".
- The furthest airport from Blythe Airport (BLH) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,472 miles (18,462 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Blythe was served by Bonanza Air Lines with Fairchild F-27s to Los Angeles, Phoenix, Tucson and other cities.
- The closest airport to Blythe Airport (BLH) is Laguna Army Airfield (LGF), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) SSE of BLH.
- Blythe Airport (BLH) has 2 runways.
- Blythe Army Air Field later became a sub-base of Muroc Army Air Field on 30 June 1945, and was inactivated on 18 October 1945, although during October–December 1946, the 477th Composite Group used the airfield for desert maneuvers, flying B-25 Mitchells.
- Because of Blythe Airport's relatively low elevation of 399 feet, planes can take off or land at Blythe 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.
- At its peak in December, 1943 the base had a population just short of 8000 uniformed and civilian personnel.
