Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Garissa, Kenya:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Garissa Airport (GAS), Garissa, Kenya would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,037 miles (or 14,544 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 Garissa 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 Garissa 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):

• On 1 August 1946, McChord was assigned to the new Air Defense Command, with a mission of air defense of the United States.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• 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.
• 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.
• On 28 February 1938 the airfield was officially transferred to the United States Government.
• In 1958, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center, and Combat Center was established at McChord.
• In 1940 McChord Field became the headquarters of the GHQ Air Force Northwest Air District, with a mission for the defense of the Pacific Northwest and Upper Great Plains regions of the United States.
• 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.
• During the International Geophysical Year 1957–1958, and subsequently through 1962 the 62d TCW supported scientific stations in the Arctic Ocean by airlanding and airdropping supplies on the drifting ice.

Facts about Garissa Airport (GAS):

• There are currently no airlines with scheduled service to Garissa.
• Because of Garissa Airport's relatively low elevation of 476 feet, planes can take off or land at Garissa 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.
• Its location is approximately 315 kilometres, by air, north of Nairobi International Airport, the country's largest civilian airport.
• The furthest airport from Garissa Airport (GAS) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,724 miles (18,867 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• The closest airport to Garissa Airport (GAS) is Hola Airport (HOA), which is located 77 miles (123 kilometers) SSE of GAS.