Nonstop flight route between Spokane, Washington, United States and Grand Canyon, Arizona, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SKA to VLE:
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- About this route
- SKA Airport Information
- VLE Airport Information
- Facts about SKA
- Facts about VLE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SKA
- List of Nearest Airports to SKA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SKA
- List of Furthest Airports from SKA
- Map of Nearest Airports to VLE
- List of Nearest Airports to VLE
- Map of Furthest Airports from VLE
- List of Furthest Airports from VLE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA), Spokane, Washington, United States and Valle Airport (VLE), Grand Canyon, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 874 miles (or 1,406 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 relatively short distance between Fairchild Air Force Base and Valle Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SKA / KSKA |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Spokane, Washington, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 47°36'54"N by 117°39'20"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from SKA |
| More Information: | SKA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | VLE / |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Grand Canyon, Arizona, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 35°38'58"N by 112°8'30"W |
| Area Served: | Valle, Arizona |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5999 feet (1,828 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from VLE |
| More Information: | VLE Maps & Info |
Facts about Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA):
- In 1995 aircraft from Fairchild flew to Travis AFB, California in support of its first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty mission, transporting Russian inspectors to sites in the Western U.S.
- Since 1942, Fairchild Air Force Base/Station has been a key part of the United States' defense strategy—from World War II repair depot, to Strategic Air Command bomber wing during the Cold War, to Air Mobility Command air refueling wing during Operation IRAQI FREEDOM.
- The furthest airport from Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,665 miles (17,163 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- On 23 January 1987, following the inactivation of the 47th Air Division at Fairchild, the 92nd Bombardment Wing was reassigned to the 57th Air Division at Minot AFB, North Dakota.
- In late 1974, the Air Force announced plans to convert the 141st Fighter Interceptor Group of the Washington Air National Guard, an F-101 Voodoo unit at Geiger Field, to an air refueling mission with KC-135 aircraft.
- In addition to being known as "Fairchild Air Force Base", another name for SKA is "Fairchild AFB".
- The 92d Air Refueling Wing is commanded by Colonel Brian M.
- The closest airport to Fairchild Air Force Base (SKA) is Spokane International Airport (GEG), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) E of SKA.
- As military operations in Vietnam escalated in the mid-1960s, the demand for air refueling increased.
Facts about Valle Airport (VLE):
- The furthest airport from Valle Airport (VLE) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,305 miles (18,194 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Because of Valle Airport's high elevation of 5,999 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at VLE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make VLE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Valle Airport, is a public airport located 25 nm south of Valle, Arizona.
- In addition to being known as "Valle Airport", another name for VLE is "40G".
- For the 12-month period ending April 20, 2009, the airport had 6,500 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 18 per day.
- The closest airport to Valle Airport (VLE) is Grand Canyon National Park Airport (GCN), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) N of VLE.
- Valle Airport (VLE) currently has only 1 runway.
