Nonstop flight route between Merauke, Papua, Indonesia and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mopah Airport (MKQ), Merauke, Papua, Indonesia and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,982 miles (or 11,237 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 Mopah Airport and McChord Field/McChord AFB, 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 Mopah Airport and McChord Field/McChord AFB. 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 Mopah Airport (MKQ):

• In addition to being known as "Mopah Airport", another name for MKQ is "Bandara Mopah".
• The furthest airport from Mopah Airport (MKQ) is Parnaíba–Prefeito Dr. João Silva Filho International Airport (PHB), which is located 11,634 miles (18,724 kilometers) away in Parnaiba, Piaui, Brazil.
• Mopah Airport (MKQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Mopah Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Mopah 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.
• The closest airport to Mopah Airport (MKQ) is Bensbach Airport (BSP), which is located 62 miles (99 kilometers) ESE of MKQ.

Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):

• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
• In 1975, TAC divested itself of its C-130 Hercules tactical airlift fleet, transferring all tactical airlift wings, groups and squadrons to MAC.
• The closest airport to McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) is Gray Army Airfield (GRF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) SW of TCM.
• Nearly all new heavy bomb groups organized after Pearl Harbor were organized and trained at Second Air Force Bases, by II Bomber Command operational training units then were deployed to combat commands around the world.
• The 62d Airlift Wing is the host unit at McChord Field.
• In 1958, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center, and Combat Center was established at McChord.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• Because of McChord Field/McChord AFB's relatively low elevation of 322 feet, planes can take off or land at McChord Field/McChord AFB 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.
• The furthest airport from McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,803 miles (17,386 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In 1940 McChord Field became the headquarters of the GHQ Air Force Northwest Air District, with a mission for the defense of the Pacific Northwest and Upper Great Plains regions of the United States.