Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Lubango, Angola:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Lubango Mukanka Airport (SDD), Lubango, Angola would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,083 miles (or 14,617 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 Lubango Mukanka 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 Lubango Mukanka 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):

• The base was the location of the first of twenty-eight stations built by ADC as part of the permanent air defense radar network, and was the top-priority site for ADC radars.
• 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.
• Starting in mid-1943 the training of B-17 and B-24 replacement crews began to be phased out, as the Second Air Force began ramping up training of B-29 Superfortress Very Heavy bomb groups, destined for Twentieth Air Force.
• In 1968, McChord AFB was relieved of its assignment to the subsequently renamed Aerospace Defense Command and was reassigned to Military Airlift Command as one of three MAC bases in the western United States operating the C-141 Starlifter.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• 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 Lubango Mukanka Airport (SDD):

• Lubango Mukanka Airport (SDD) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Lubango Mukanka Airport (SDD) is Vila Roçadas/Xangongo Airport (XGN), which is located 156 miles (252 kilometers) SE of SDD.
• Because of Lubango Mukanka Airport's high elevation of 5,778 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at SDD. Combined with a high temperature, this could make SDD a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Lubango Mukanka Airport (SDD) is Johnston Atoll Airport (JON), which is nearly antipodal to Lubango Mukanka Airport (meaning Lubango Mukanka Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Johnston Atoll Airport), and is located 12,195 miles (19,627 kilometers) away in Johnston Atoll, U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.
• In addition to being known as "Lubango Mukanka Airport", other names for SDD include "Aeroporto Lubango Mukanka (Lubango (Sá da Bandeira))" and "Aeroporto de Lubango".