Nonstop flight route between Wallis and Futuna Islands and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WLS to TCM:
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- About this route
- WLS Airport Information
- TCM Airport Information
- Facts about WLS
- Facts about TCM
- Map of Nearest Airports to WLS
- List of Nearest Airports to WLS
- Map of Furthest Airports from WLS
- List of Furthest Airports from WLS
- Map of Nearest Airports to TCM
- List of Nearest Airports to TCM
- Map of Furthest Airports from TCM
- List of Furthest Airports from TCM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Wallis Island (WLS), Wallis and Futuna Islands and McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,326 miles (or 8,571 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 Wallis Island and McChord Field/McChord AFB, 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 Wallis Island and McChord Field/McChord AFB. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WLS / NLWW |
| Airport Name: | Wallis Island |
| Location: | Wallis and Futuna Islands |
| GPS Coordinates: | 13°16'1"S by 176°11'59"W |
| Elevation: | 0 feet (0 meters) |
| View all routes: | Routes from WLS |
| More Information: | WLS Maps & Info |
Arrival 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 |
Facts about Wallis Island (WLS):
- The furthest airport from Wallis Island (WLS) is Diori Hamani International Airport (NIM), which is nearly antipodal to Wallis Island (meaning Wallis Island is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Diori Hamani International Airport), and is located 12,326 miles (19,837 kilometers) away in Niamey, Niger.
- The island was renamed "Wallis" after a Cornish navigator, Captain Samuel Wallis, who discovered it while sailing the HMS Dolphin on August 16, 1767, following his discovery of Tahiti.
- Sub-equatorial oceanic trade wind, hot and humid.
- Rainfall is 2500–3000 mm per year in 4000 to Wallis and Futuna mm.
- Because of Wallis Island's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wallis Island 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.
- After a referendum in 1959, Wallis became a French Overseas Territory in 1961.
- The closest airport to Wallis Island (WLS) is Aéroport de Futuna - Pointe-Vele Pointe Vele Airport (FUT), which is located 145 miles (233 kilometers) WSW of WLS.
- The Kalae Kivalu is the Chief of the Customary Council of Ministers and Prime Minister.
Facts about McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM):
- McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM) has 2 runways.
- 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 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.
- The McChord Air Museum features exhibits about McChord Field and a collection of restored military aircraft.
- 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.
- 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 1958, a Semi Automatic Ground Environment Data Center, and Combat Center was established at McChord.
