Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Cold Bay, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Port Moller Airport (PML), Cold Bay, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,192 miles (or 6,747 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Port Moller Airport, 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 MacDill Air Force Base and Port Moller Airport. 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 MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• 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.
• Estimates of the number of crew members trained at the base during the war vary from 50,000 to 120,000, with as many as 15,000 troops were stationed at MacDill Field at one time.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• Flying operations at MacDill began in 1941 with the base's first mission being the defense of Gulf of Mexico.
• 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.
• After the war in Europe had broken out in September 1939, fears of Nazi U-Boats attacking American shipping in the Gulf of Mexico was the concern of the War Department.
• 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 rapid demobilization after the war led these units to be inactivated during 1946.

Facts about Port Moller Airport (PML):

• The airport covers an area of 369 acres at an elevation of 20 feet above mean sea level.
• The airport was built in 1958 to support Port Moller Air Force Station, a Cold War United States Air Force Distant Early Warning Line radar station.
• The furthest airport from Port Moller Airport (PML) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,914 miles (17,564 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Port Moller Airport (PML) is Nelson Lagoon Airport (NLG), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) W of PML.
• In addition to being known as "Port Moller Airport", other names for PML include "Port Moller Air Force Station" and "1AK3".
• Because of Port Moller Airport's relatively low elevation of 20 feet, planes can take off or land at Port Moller 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.
• Port Moller Airport (PML) currently has only 1 runway.