Nonstop flight route between Vadsø, Finnmark, Norway and Tacoma, Washington, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from VDS to GRF:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- VDS Airport Information
- GRF Airport Information
- Facts about VDS
- Facts about GRF
- Map of Nearest Airports to VDS
- List of Nearest Airports to VDS
- Map of Furthest Airports from VDS
- List of Furthest Airports from VDS
- 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 Vadsø Airport (VDS), Vadsø, Finnmark, Norway and Gray Army Airfield (GRF), Tacoma, Washington, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,225 miles (or 6,799 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 Vadsø Airport and Gray Army Airfield, 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 Vadsø Airport and Gray Army Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | VDS / ENVD |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Vadsø, Finnmark, Norway |
GPS Coordinates: | 70°3'55"N by 29°50'40"E |
Area Served: | Vadsø |
Operator/Owner: | Avinor |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 127 feet (39 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from VDS |
More Information: | VDS 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 Vadsø Airport (VDS):
- Vadsø was during the late 1930s and from the mid-1940s served with a seaplane route operated by Widerøe and Norwegian Air Lines.
- Widerøe operated Twin Otters on the route until 1995, when the Dash 8 was introduced.
- The closest airport to Vadsø Airport (VDS) is Kirkenes Airport, Høybuktmoen (KKN), which is located 24 miles (38 kilometers) S of VDS.
- Both Widerøe and Norving applied to operate the Finnmark route, which would connect the airports together and to the primary airports in Finnmark and Tromsø Airport.
- Varangfly proposed Vadsø as a possible site of a small airfield in 1964, suitable for landing air taxis and air ambulances.
- Vadsø Airport is a regional airport in Vadsø Municipality in Finnmark county, Norway.
- The furthest airport from Vadsø Airport (VDS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,407 miles (16,748 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- Vadsø Airport handled 81,772 passengers last year.
- In addition to being known as "Vadsø Airport", another name for VDS is "Vadsø lufthavn".
- Because of Vadsø Airport's relatively low elevation of 127 feet, planes can take off or land at Vadsø 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.
Facts about Gray Army Airfield (GRF):
- 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.
- August 1984 saw GAAF become one of few test centers for the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters.
- 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 closest airport to Gray Army Airfield (GRF) is McChord Field/McChord AFB (TCM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of GRF.
- Gray Army Airfield (GRF) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- Gray Army Airfield, also known as Gray AAF, is a military airfield located within Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, in Pierce County, Washington, United States.
- In addition to being known as "Gray Army Airfield", another name for GRF is "(Joint Base Lewis-McChord)".
- With World War II, Gray Army Airfield received 1.7 million dollars for new hangars and improved facilities.
- The Washington National Guard 66th Aviation Brigade trains at Grey AAF and provides transportation support for fighting wildfires.