Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Mercury, Nevada, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from TCM to DRA:
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- About this route
- TCM Airport Information
- DRA Airport Information
- Facts about TCM
- Facts about DRA
- 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 DRA
- List of Nearest Airports to DRA
- Map of Furthest Airports from DRA
- List of Furthest Airports from DRA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Desert Rock Airport (DRA), Mercury, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 798 miles (or 1,284 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 McChord Field/McChord AFB and Desert Rock Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | TCM / KTCM |
Airport Names: |
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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: | DRA / KDRA |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Mercury, Nevada, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 36°37'9"N by 116°1'58"W |
Operator/Owner: | Mercury, Nevada |
Airport Type: | United States Department of Energy/Nevada |
Elevation: | 1010 feet (308 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from DRA |
More Information: | DRA Maps & Info |
Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
- 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.
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
- 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 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.
- 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.
Facts about Desert Rock Airport (DRA):
- The closest airport to Desert Rock Airport (DRA) is Creech Air Force Base Indian Springs Auxiliary Army Airfield (1961) Indian Springs Air Force Base (1951) Indian Springs Army Airfield Indian Springs Airport eponyms: Indian Springs, Nevada &Wilbur L. Creech[1] (INS), which is located only 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of DRA.
- The furthest airport from Desert Rock Airport (DRA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,271 miles (18,139 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- In addition to being known as "Desert Rock Airport", another name for DRA is "NV65".
- Desert Rock Airport (DRA) currently has only 1 runway.