Nonstop flight route between Pisa, Italy and Tacoma, Washington, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Pisa International Airport (PSA), Pisa, Italy and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,536 miles (or 8,909 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 Pisa 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 Pisa 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 Pisa International Airport (PSA):

• The airport resides at an elevation of 6 feet above mean sea level.
• Because of Pisa International Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Pisa International 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 furthest airport from Pisa International Airport (PSA) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Pisa International Airport (meaning Pisa International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,095 miles (19,465 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Pisa International Airport (PSA) is Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) ENE of PSA.
• On 23 November 2009, Italian Air Force Lockheed KC-130J Hercules MM62176 of the based 46 Aerobrigata crashed just after take-off.
• Pisa International Airport handled 4,494,915 passengers last year.
• Pisa International Airport (PSA) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Pisa International Airport", another name for PSA is "Aeroporto Internazionale di Pisa".

Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):

• The base was the location of the first of twenty-eight stations built by ADC as part of the permanent air defense radar network, and was the top-priority site for ADC radars.
• The ADC radar site was deactivated 1 April 1960 and repositioned to Fort Lawton AFS where the Air Force consolidated its anti-aircraft radars with the United States Army Seattle Defense Area Army Air-Defense Command Post S-90DC for Nike missile operations.
• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• 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.
• Following the end of the war in Europe, McChord redeployed thousands of troops arriving from the European theater to the Pacific as part of Air Transport Command.
• 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.
• 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)".
• 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.
• 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 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.