Nonstop flight route between Suffield, Alberta, Canada and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from YSD to GRF:
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- About this route
- YSD Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about YSD
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to YSD
- List of Nearest Airports to YSD
- Map of Furthest Airports from YSD
- List of Furthest Airports from YSD
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRF
- List of Nearest Airports to GRF
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRF
- List of Furthest Airports from GRF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between CFB Suffield (YSD), Suffield, Alberta, Canada and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 564 miles (or 908 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 relatively short distance between CFB Suffield and Gray Army Airfield, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | YSD / CYSD |
Airport Name: | CFB Suffield |
Location: | Suffield, Alberta, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 50°16'23"N by 111°10'29"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of Canada |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 2525 feet (770 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from YSD |
More Information: | YSD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRF / KGRF |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Tacoma, Washington, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 47°4'45"N by 122°34'50"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 300 feet (91 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GRF |
More Information: | GRF Maps & Info |
Facts about CFB Suffield (YSD):
- British Army training has continued at Suffield since 1971, with the shared-use agreement being extended several times.
- The decision to designate the Suffield Block a military training facility in 1941 left tens of square kilometres of undisturbed prairie grassland intact from the effects of industrial agriculture.
- On August 25, 1971, the Canadian Government ratified a ten-year agreement with the British Government that allowed the British Armed Forces to use the northern three-quarters of the Suffield Block.
- The furthest airport from CFB Suffield (YSD) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,339 miles (16,640 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to CFB Suffield (YSD) is Medicine Hat Airport (YXH), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) SE of YSD.
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- During the Vietnam War, GAAF not only trained helicopter units, but fixed-wing aircraft units as well.
- The 91st Observation Squadron and aircraft of the 3rd Balloon Squadron operated out of the Fort Lewis airfield.
- The furthest airport from Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,809 miles (17,395 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Because of Gray Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Gray Army Airfield 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.
- During the Korean War, GAAF continued in the role as a training and division support field.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- In October 1921 Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny” biplanes flew from the Naval Station at Sand Point to a grass airfield at what was then called "Camp Lewis", located at a site just west of today’s Gray AAF.
- GAAF units have served in Iraq with Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, returning from a 15 month deployment on April 17, 2004.
- The closest airport to Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of GRF.