Nonstop flight route between Tacoma, Washington, United States and Norfolk Island, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GRF to NLK:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- GRF Airport Information
- NLK Airport Information
- Facts about GRF
- Facts about NLK
- 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 NLK
- List of Nearest Airports to NLK
- Map of Furthest Airports from NLK
- List of Furthest Airports from NLK
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States and Norfolk Island Airport (NLK), Norfolk Island, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,802 miles (or 10,946 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 Norfolk Island 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 Norfolk Island 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: |
|
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: | NLK / YNSF |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Norfolk Island, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 29°2'33"S by 167°56'17"E |
Area Served: | Norfolk Island |
Operator/Owner: | Administration of Norfolk Island |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 371 feet (113 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from NLK |
More Information: | NLK Maps & Info |
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- Camp Lewis advocates pushed for it to be a major dirigible and fixed-wing field.
- 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.
- The 9th Cavalry Brigade in the 1980s developed air-assault strategies with their AH-1 Cobra helicopters based upon experiences learned in Vietnam.
- Reactivated following service in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division aviation units occupied GAAF in 1972.
- World War II cantonment construction involved the demolition of some of the pre-1941 buildings.
- 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 closest airport to Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of GRF.
- The 91st Observation Squadron and aircraft of the 3rd Balloon Squadron operated out of the Fort Lewis airfield.
- 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.
Facts about Norfolk Island Airport (NLK):
- The closest airport to Norfolk Island Airport (NLK) is Nouméa Magenta Airport (GEA), which is located 478 miles (769 kilometers) NNW of NLK.
- Norfolk Island Airport handled 57,758 passengers last year.
- The furthest airport from Norfolk Island Airport (NLK) is Tan Tan Airport (TTA), which is nearly antipodal to Norfolk Island Airport (meaning Norfolk Island Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Tan Tan Airport), and is located 12,369 miles (19,905 kilometers) away in Tan-Tan, Morocco.
- Because of Norfolk Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 371 feet, planes can take off or land at Norfolk Island 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.
- From New Caledonia other Pacific Islands such as Vanuatu and Fiji are within range and can be used as further 'stepping stones' to the other South Pacific and North Pacific destinations.
- Norfolk Island Airport (NLK) has 2 runways.
- The airstrip was built during World War II as a defensive measure to counter feared Japanese operations in the South Pacific.
- In addition to being known as "Norfolk Island Airport", another name for NLK is "YSNF".
- Norfolk Island Airport was ranked 56th in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in financial year 2010-2011.
- These distances are within the range of many light aircraft when fitted with long range tanks, while the direct distance without using Norfolk Island as a stepping stone, is usually beyond their capabilities.