Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from TCM to BWB:
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- About this route
- TCM Airport Information
- BWB Airport Information
- Facts about TCM
- Facts about BWB
- Map of Nearest Airports to TCM
- List of Nearest Airports to TCM
- Map of Furthest Airports from TCM
- List of Furthest Airports from TCM
- Map of Nearest Airports to BWB
- List of Nearest Airports to BWB
- Map of Furthest Airports from BWB
- List of Furthest Airports from BWB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Barrow Island Airport (BWB), Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,761 miles (or 14,099 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 Barrow Island 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 Barrow Island Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | TCM / KTCM |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Tacoma, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°8'16"N by 122°28'35"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military: Air Force Base |
Elevation: | 322 feet (98 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from TCM |
More Information: | TCM Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BWB / YBWX |
Airport Name: | Barrow Island Airport |
Location: | Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 20°51'56"S by 115°24'16"E |
Operator/Owner: | Bristow Helicopters Australia Pty. Ltd. |
Airport Type: | Private |
Elevation: | 26 feet (8 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BWB |
More Information: | BWB Maps & Info |
Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
- Today, the successor organization to the 25th AD, the Western Air Defense Sector, is a major tenant organization at McChord, being one of two air defense sectors responsible for the security and integrity of continental United States air space.
- 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.
- 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 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.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
- Part of Air Mobility Command
- 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 Barrow Island Airport (BWB):
- Because of Barrow Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Barrow Island 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.
- Barrow Island Airport (BWB) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Barrow Island Airport (BWB) is Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport (EIS), which is nearly antipodal to Barrow Island Airport (meaning Barrow Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport), and is located 12,270 miles (19,746 kilometers) away in Beef Island (near Tortola), British Virgin Islands.
- The closest airport to Barrow Island Airport (BWB) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is located 89 miles (143 kilometers) E of BWB.