Nonstop flight route between Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SUM to GRF:
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- About this route
- SUM Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about SUM
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to SUM
- List of Nearest Airports to SUM
- Map of Furthest Airports from SUM
- List of Furthest Airports from SUM
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRF
- List of Nearest Airports to GRF
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRF
- List of Furthest Airports from GRF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sumter Airport (SUM), Sumter, South Carolina, United States and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,360 miles (or 3,797 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 Sumter Airport and Gray Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SUM / KSMS |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Sumter, South Carolina, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°59'41"N by 80°21'41"W |
| Area Served: | Sumter, South Carolina |
| Operator/Owner: | City & County of Sumter |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 182 feet (55 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SUM |
| More Information: | SUM Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRF / KGRF |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Tacoma, Washington, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 47°4'45"N by 122°34'50"W |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 300 feet (91 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GRF |
| More Information: | GRF Maps & Info |
Facts about Sumter Airport (SUM):
- Sumter Airport (SUM) has 2 runways.
- Because of Sumter Airport's relatively low elevation of 182 feet, planes can take off or land at Sumter 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 Sumter Airport (SUM) is Shaw Air Force Base (SSC), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) WSW of SUM.
- In addition to being known as "Sumter Airport", another name for SUM is "SMS".
- The furthest airport from Sumter Airport (SUM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,552 miles (18,590 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
- The furthest airport from Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,809 miles (17,395 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of GRF.
- It should not confused with Robert Gray Army Airfield at Fort Hood in Texas.
- Camp Lewis advocates pushed for it to be a major dirigible and fixed-wing field.
- Because of Gray Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Gray Army Airfield 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 Army Air Force closed its facilities in 1947.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- Since 2005 the field has been experiencing another major expansion.
- The 1938 construction included two paved runways, a boiler plant, headquarters building, metal balloon hangar, six-plane hangar, corrugated-iron hangar, storehouse, flight-surgeon office, and film-storage building.
