Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Pukarua, Tuamotus, French Polynesia:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from TCM to PUK:
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- About this route
- TCM Airport Information
- PUK Airport Information
- Facts about TCM
- Facts about PUK
- 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 PUK
- List of Nearest Airports to PUK
- Map of Furthest Airports from PUK
- List of Furthest Airports from PUK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Pukarua Airport (PUK), Pukarua, Tuamotus, French Polynesia would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,611 miles (or 7,420 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 Pukarua 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 Pukarua 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: |
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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: | PUK / NTGQ |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Pukarua, Tuamotus, French Polynesia |
GPS Coordinates: | 18°17'44"S by 137°1'0"W |
Area Served: | Pukarua |
Operator/Owner: | DSEAC Polynésie Française |
Airport Type: | Public |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from PUK |
More Information: | PUK Maps & Info |
Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (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.
- 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.
- Other wing components are the 62d Maintenance Group, 62d Mission Support Group and 62d Medical Squadron.
- 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 closest airport to McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) is Gray Army Airfield (GRF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) SW of TCM.
- In 1947 Tactical Air Command moved the 62d Troop Carrier Group to McChord Field from Bergstrom Field, Texas.
- In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
Facts about Pukarua Airport (PUK):
- In addition to being known as "Pukarua Airport", another name for PUK is "Aérodrome de Pukarua".
- The closest airport to Pukarua Airport (PUK) is Nukutavake Airport (NUK), which is located 134 miles (215 kilometers) WSW of PUK.
- Pukarua Airport (PUK) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Pukarua Airport (PUK) is Abha Regional Airport (AHB), which is nearly antipodal to Pukarua Airport (meaning Pukarua Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Abha Regional Airport), and is located 12,415 miles (19,980 kilometers) away in Abha / Khamis Mushait, Saudi Arabia.