Nonstop flight route between Nairobi, Kenya and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), Nairobi, Kenya and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,038 miles (or 14,545 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 Jomo Kenyatta International 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 Jomo Kenyatta International 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 Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO):

• The furthest airport from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,621 miles (18,703 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• Jomo Kenyatta International Airport handled 580,363 passengers last year.
• A new instrument landing system-equipped runway 5,500 metres in length has been approved for construction at a cost of 12.8 billion Kenyan shillings.
• The original terminal, located on the north side of the runway, is used by the Kenya Air Force and is sometimes referred as Old Embakasi Airport.
• Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport's high elevation of 5,327 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at NBO. Combined with a high temperature, this could make NBO a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• On 5 August 2013, an airlock in the main pipeline that delivers jet fuel to the airport caused all inbound flights to the airport to be diverted to other airfields.
• The closest airport to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) is Wilson Airport (WIL), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) W of NBO.
• An addition to the existing terminal building, Unit 4, is under construction at a cost of 9.4 billion Kenyan shillings and is slated to open in 2013.

Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):

• Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, the 17th Bombardment Group flew anti-submarine patrols off the west coast of the United States with the new North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber.
• The 325th Fighter Group operated two squadrons of F-82F Twin Mustangs from McChord between 1948 and 1950, the first postwar fighter optimized for the air defense interceptor mission.
• In 1917, the citizens of Pierce County, Washington approved a bond measure for $2,000,000 to buy 70,000 acres of land to be donated to the Federal Government for use as a military reservation.
• 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.
• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
• During 1952 and 1953, the 62nd airlifted troops, blood plasma, aircraft parts, ammunition, medical supplies, and much more, to the Far East, in support of the war in Korea.
• 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.
• 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.