Nonstop flight route between Tampa, Florida, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MCF to THU:
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- About this route
- MCF Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about MCF
- Facts about THU
- 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 THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,395 miles (or 5,464 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 Thule Air Base, 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 Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
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: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
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.
- 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.
- All of these airfields came under the jurisdiction of Third Air Force.
- 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.
- The base also supports the large military retiree community in the Tampa Bay area and surrounding environs.
- It was the B-26 that earned the slogan "one a day in Tampa Bay." The aircraft proved hard to fly and land by many pilots due to its short wings, high landing speeds, and fighter plane maneuverability.
- In an administrative reorganization by HQ Army Air Force, on 1 May 1944, numbered training units in the Zone of the Interior were re-designated as "Army Air Force Base Units".
- The 6 AMW also has a collocated "Associate" wing at MacDill, the 927th Air Refueling Wing of the Air Force Reserve Command.
- In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- A board of Air Force officers headed by Gordon P.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- Late 1950s the DEW 1 to 4 where build as "weather stations", Thule Air Base would act as an supply station for the DYE bases.
- On 21 January 1968, a B-52G Stratofortress from the 380th Strategic Aerospace Wing, Plattsburgh Air Force Base, New York on a secret airborne nuclear alert crashed and burned on the ice near Thule Air Base.
