Nonstop flight route between Knoxville, Tennessee, United States and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS), Knoxville, Tennessee, United States and Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,297 miles (or 5,306 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 McGhee Tyson Airport and Elmendorf Air Force Base, 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 McGhee Tyson Airport and Elmendorf Air Force Base. 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 McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS):

• Because of McGhee Tyson Airport's relatively low elevation of 981 feet, planes can take off or land at McGhee Tyson 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 furthest airport from McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,348 miles (18,263 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The development of TYS helped the City of Alcoa diversify its economy and gain its economic independence from what is today Alcoa Inc., the world's third largest producer of aluminum.
• In 1927 McGhee Tyson airport opened in honor of Charles McGhee Tyson.
• McGhee Tyson Airport covers 2,250 acres at an elevation of 981 feet above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is Gatlinburg–Pigeon Forge Airport (GKT), which is located 26 miles (42 kilometers) E of TYS.
• This airport is in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which called it a primary commercial service airport since it has over 10,000 passenger boardings per year.Federal Aviation Administration records say the airport had 841,237 enplanements in 2011, an increase from 804,917 in 2010.
• In addition to being known as "McGhee Tyson Airport", another name for TYS is "McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base".
• In 1951 the United States Air Force built several facilities on the field and a 7,500-foot runway.
• McGhee Tyson Airport is a public and military airport 12 miles south of Knoxville, in Alcoa, Blount County, Tennessee, United States.
• McGhee Tyson Airport handled 1,688,882 passengers last year.
• McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) has 2 runways.

Facts about Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The Elmendorf AFB is a site of one of the now decommissioned FLR-9 Wullenweber-class antennas, a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT direction finding system.
• That importance was further recognized when the F-15E Strike Eagle equipped 90th Tactical Fighter Squadron was reassigned to Elmendorf Air Force Base from Clark Air Base in the Philippines in May 1991.
• The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.