Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from TCM to FFA:
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- About this route
- TCM Airport Information
- FFA Airport Information
- Facts about TCM
- Facts about FFA
- 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 FFA
- List of Nearest Airports to FFA
- Map of Furthest Airports from FFA
- List of Furthest Airports from FFA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and First Flight Airport (FFA), Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,497 miles (or 4,018 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 First Flight 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: | FFA / KFFA |
| Airport Name: | First Flight Airport |
| Location: | Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 36°1'5"N by 75°40'17"W |
| Area Served: | Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. National Park Service |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 13 feet (4 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from FFA |
| More Information: | FFA 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)".
- 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.
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
- 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 McChord Air Force Base facility was consolidated with the United States Army Fort Lewis on 1 February 2010 to become part of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord complex.
- 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.
- The ADC radar site was deactivated 1 April 1960 and repositioned to Fort Lawton AFS where the Air Force consolidated its anti-aircraft radars with the United States Army Seattle Defense Area Army Air-Defense Command Post S-90DC for Nike missile operations.
Facts about First Flight Airport (FFA):
- Because of First Flight Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at First Flight 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 First Flight Airport (FFA) is Dare County Regional Airport (MEO), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) S of FFA.
- First Flight Airport covers an area of 40 acres at an elevation of 13 feet above mean sea level.
- The furthest airport from First Flight Airport (FFA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,810 miles (19,007 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- First Flight Airport (FFA) currently has only 1 runway.
- The airport itself is famous for being the site of hundreds of pre-flight gliding experiments carried out by the Wright brothers.
