Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GRF to BKY:
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- About this route
- GRF Airport Information
- BKY Airport Information
- Facts about GRF
- Facts about BKY
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRF
- List of Nearest Airports to GRF
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRF
- List of Furthest Airports from GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to BKY
- List of Nearest Airports to BKY
- Map of Furthest Airports from BKY
- List of Furthest Airports from BKY
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Kuvumu Airport (BKY), Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,900 miles (or 14,324 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 Gray Army Airfield and Kuvumu 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 Gray Army Airfield and Kuvumu Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRF / KGRF |
Airport Names: |
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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 |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BKY / FZMA |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo |
GPS Coordinates: | 2°18'32"S by 28°48'30"E |
Operator/Owner: | Government |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 5643 feet (1,720 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BKY |
More Information: | BKY Maps & Info |
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- 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.
- World War II cantonment construction involved the demolition of some of the pre-1941 buildings.
- After the Korean War, the 2d Aviation Company, of the 2d Infantry Division, which had been the first helicopter unit in Korea, returned to Fort Lewis with observation/spotter aircraft L-19 Bird Dogs, and L-20 Beavers, as well as H-23 Raven helicopters.
- It should not confused with Robert Gray Army Airfield at Fort Hood in Texas.
- 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.
- Since 2005 the field has been experiencing another major expansion.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- The Army Air Force closed its facilities in 1947.
- In 1926, the War Department observing aviation expansion overseas requested additional aviation funding.
- Used to support Fort Lewis, Army helicopters assisted with medical evacuations at Mount Rainier National Park on numerous occasions in the 1970s.
- Company A, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, conducts high-altitude search-and-rescue operations.
Facts about Kuvumu Airport (BKY):
- Because of Kuvumu Airport's high elevation of 5,643 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at BKY. Combined with a high temperature, this could make BKY a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- In addition to being known as "Kuvumu Airport", other names for BKY include "Bukavu Kuvumu Airport" and "Kuvumu Airport (Bukavu)".
- Kuvumu Airport (BKY) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Kuvumu Airport (BKY) is Goma Airport (GOM), which is located 53 miles (86 kilometers) NE of BKY.
- The furthest airport from Kuvumu Airport (BKY) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is nearly antipodal to Kuvumu Airport (meaning Kuvumu Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cassidy International Airport), and is located 12,011 miles (19,330 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.