Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Château-Thierry, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY), Château-Thierry, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,042 miles (or 8,114 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome, 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 Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome. 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 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 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.
• On 1 August 1946, McChord was assigned to the new Air Defense Command, with a mission of air defense of the United States.
• 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 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.
• 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 1945 McChord was designated as a permanent station by the Army Air Forces.
• In addition to being known as "McChord Field/McChord AFB", another name for TCM is "Part of Air Mobility Command (AMC)".
• 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.
• McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.

Facts about Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY):

• The closest airport to Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) is Reims-Champagne Air Base (RHE), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) ENE of XCY.
• Because of Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome's relatively low elevation of 723 feet, planes can take off or land at Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome 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.
• In addition to being known as "Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome", another name for XCY is "Aérodrome de Château-Thierry - Belleau".
• Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (XCY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome (meaning Château-Thierry - Belleau Aerodrome is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,073 miles (19,430 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.