Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Butare, Rwanda:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Butare Airport (BTQ), Butare, Rwanda would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,939 miles (or 14,386 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 McChord Field/McChord AFB and Butare Airport, 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 McChord Field/McChord AFB and Butare Airport. 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 McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):

• 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 62d Airlift Wing is the host unit at McChord Field.
• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• With the departure of the 17th Bomb Group, the mission of McChord Field became supporting the Army Air Forces Training Command's mission of training of units, crews, and individuals for bombardment, fighter, and reconnaissance operations.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 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.

Facts about Butare Airport (BTQ):

• The furthest airport from Butare Airport (BTQ) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,946 miles (19,224 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• The closest airport to Butare Airport (BTQ) is Kirundo Airport (KRE), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) E of BTQ.
• Butare Airport is an airport in Rwanda.
• Because of Butare Airport's high elevation of 5,801 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at BTQ. Combined with a high temperature, this could make BTQ a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Butare Airport (BTQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Butare Airport", another name for BTQ is "Butare".