McChord Air Force Base Private
TCM · KTCM · Tacoma, WA · 322 ft elevation · var 15E · Towered
Airport information
- ICAO / IATA
- KTCM / TCM
- Coordinates
- 47.1377, -122.4760
- Elevation
- 322 ft MSL
- Magnetic variation
- 15E
- Sectional chart
- SEATTLE
- Airport use
- Private
- Control tower
- Yes
- Tower hours
- 24 hours
- Airspace
- Class D
- Weather station
- ASOS · 135.825 · ☎ 253-982-3434
- ARTCC
- SEATTLE (ZSE)
- Flight service (FSS)
- SEATTLE · 1-800-WX-BRIEF
- NOTAM facility
- TCM
- Attendance
- ALL ALL
- Beacon
- white-green (SS-SR)
- Segmented circle
- No
- Customs / AOE
- Yes
- Activated
- 1938/08
- Distance from city
- 3 S
Weather
METAR observed
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TAF forecast
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Sun & FAA night 2026-06-22
| Event | Local (PDT) | UTC |
|---|---|---|
| Morning civil twilight Loggable night ends | 04:34 AM | 11:34Z |
| Sunrise | 05:14 AM | 12:14Z |
| Sunset | 09:09 PM | 04:09Z |
| Evening civil twilight Loggable night begins | 09:49 PM | 04:49Z |
Plan a flight from KTCM
Night operations
- Airport lighting
- SS-SR
- Rotating beacon
- white-green · SS-SR
Runway lighting aids — 16: 4-light PAPI (left) + ALSF1 · 34: 4-light PAPI (left) + ALSF2.
FAA night windows (civil twilight, loggable night §1.1, currency §61.57) are in the live weather panel above.
Traffic pattern
- Landing
- Rwy 16 · 165°
- Pattern
- left (turns left)
- TPA
- 1,300 ft MSL (≈1,000 AGL)
Enter the left downwind for Rwy 16 at 1,300 ft MSL (≈1,000 AGL) on a 45°. TPA estimated at 1,000 ft AGL (not charted for this field).
Runway 16/34
10,108 ft × 150 ft · ASPH-CONC- Heading
- 165° mag · 180° true
- Threshold elev
- 282 ft
- Markings
- precision
- VGSI
- 4-light PAPI (left) (3°)
- Approach lights
- ALSF1
- Instrument landing
- LOC/GS · CAT I · LOC 109.9 (MAR) · GS 3.00°
- Traffic pattern
- Left
- Arresting gear
- BAK-12B
- Threshold crossing height
- 68 ft
- TDZ elevation
- 286 ft
- End lights
- centerline
- Heading
- 345° mag · 360° true
- Threshold elev
- 321 ft
- Markings
- precision
- VGSI
- 4-light PAPI (left) (3°)
- Approach lights
- ALSF2
- Instrument landing
- ILS · CAT II · LOC 108.5 (TCM) · GS 3.00°
- Traffic pattern
- Right
- Arresting gear
- BAK-12B
- Threshold crossing height
- 59 ft
- TDZ elevation
- 322 ft
- End lights
- centerline, TDZ
Runway 160/340
3,000 ft × 60 ft · ASPH- Heading
- n/a
- Heading
- n/a
| Runway | Length | Your margin |
|---|---|---|
| 16/34 | 10,108 ft | |
| 160/340 | 3,000 ft |
Communication frequencies
Tower & ground · “Mcchord”
| ATIS | 135.825 |
| Ground | 118.175 |
| Tower | 124.8 |
| Emergency | 121.5 |
Approach & departure · “Seattle”
| App/Dep | 126.5 |
ATC assigns the exact frequency (in your clearance or on handoff) — which one depends on your SID (departing) or STAR (arriving).
By procedure & sector (13 frequencies)
| Frequency | Used by |
|---|---|
| 123.9 | GLASR STAR |
| 125.6 | JAWBN STAR |
| 134.1 | COMD POST |
| 243.0 | EMERG |
| 259.3 | LCL/P |
| 270.1 | D-ATIS |
| 273.45 | JAWBN STAR |
| 279.65 | GND/P |
| 338.2 | GLASR STAR |
| 342.3 | PMSV METRO (UNUSBL 095-102 BYD 34 NM BLW 9400 FT) |
| 349.4 | ALCP |
| 372.2 | PTD |
| 377.15 | APCH/P DEP/P |
Source: FAA NASR (current 28-day cycle).
Instrument landing systems
| Runway | ILS |
|---|---|
| RWY 16 | LOC/GS · CAT I · LOC 109.9 (MAR) · GS 3.00° |
| RWY 34 | ILS · CAT II · LOC 108.5 (TCM) · GS 3.00° |
Source: FAA NASR (current 28-day cycle).
Nearby navigation aids
| NavAid | Type | Freq | Radial / Dist magnetic |
|---|---|---|---|
| TCM · Mcchord | VORTAC | 109.60 | r162° / 0.6 NM |
| SEA · Seattle | VORTAC | 116.80 | r182° / 19.1 NM |
| OLM · Olympia | VORTAC | 113.40 | r041° / 20.1 NM |
Airport diagram
Open PDF ↗Preview diagram
Procedures at a glance
Approaches7
Departures
Arrivals
Minimums & Hot Spots
Chart Supplement FAA A/FD
Open PDF ↗Preview Chart Supplement
VFR sectional
Services
- Bottled oxygen
- NONE
- Bulk oxygen
- HIGH/LOW
- Airframe service
- MAJOR
- Powerplant service
- MAJOR
Ownership & management
Remarks FAA
- JASU: (MD-3M) 1(MD-3) 1(MA-1A) (AM32A-60) 1(MC-11).
- FLUID: SP PRESAIR DE-ICE-EXP 3 HR DELAY. LHOX LOX.
- OIL: O-128-133-148-156 SOAP - RESULTS RQR 24 HR, 1530-0030Z++ WKD EXC HOL, RESULTS NOT AVBL OT. TRAN ACFT REQ SOAP WILL ARR WITH HISTORICAL ENG SOAP DATA FOR TREND ANALYSIS.
- TRAN ALERT: OPR H24. DELAYS CAN BE EXP. PRK LTD. ALL TRAN ACFT RQR TRAN ALERT FOLLOW ME ASSISTANCE.
- AMP-1/AMP-3 OVERT/COVERT ASSAULT ZONE LGTS INSTL IN MIDDLE 5000 FT RY 16/34.SEE AP/1.
- RSTD: ALL ACFT INC SKED AMC MSN RQR PPR 24 HR PRIOR TO ARR. PPR'S EFFECTIVE +/- 1 HR. TRAN ACFT PARK EXTREMELY LTD. MSN PLANNERS MUST CTC AMOPS WHEN USING MCCHORD AS DIVERT BASE. AMPOS DSN 382-5611, C253-982-5611. ACFT RON MORE THAN 3 DAYS AND/OR RQR OTHER THAN NORMAL TRANS SVC MUST CTC 62 AW/XP, 253-982-5890. ALL INBD ACFT MUST CTC COMD POST (RAINIER OPS) NO LATER THAN 30 MIN PRIOR TO LDG.
- RSTD: AMC ACFT OPR RSTD DUR BIRD WATCH COND MODERATE (TKOF AND LDG PERMS ONLY WHEN DEP/ARR RTE AVOID IDENT BIRD ACT, NO LCL IFR/VFR TFC PAT ACT) AND SEVERE (TKOF AND LDG PROHWO OG/CC APVL), CTC PTD/ATIS/COMD POST FOR CURRENT BIRD WATCH COND.
- RSTD: TRAN AIRCREWS CONDUCTING LCL AREA LO-LEVEL TRNG MSN MUST RCV LCL PRO/RSTD BRIEFING FR 62 OSS/OSK AT DSN 382-3615, C253-982-3615.
- CAUTION: WHEN PERFORMING PRE-TKOF ENG RUNUP, ALIGN ACFT SO THAT DEBRIS IS NOT BLOWN TOWARD ADTAC ALERT HGR OR ADJ ACFT PRK RAMP. DUR VFR COND, ACFT MAKING LO APCH, NML TKOF, TOUCH AND GO LDG, OR MISSED APCH REMAIN AT OR BLW 1800 FT TIL DEP END OF THE RWY.
- TFC PAT: BEFORE LDG MAINT TFC PAT ALT COMMENSURATE WITH SAFETY AS LONG AS PRACTICABLE. RECTANGULAR 1800', OVERHEAD 2300'.
- CSTMS/AG/IMG: CSTMS AVBL, 1 HR PN RQR WKD 1600-0100Z++, OT 2 HR PN RQR. IMG ON CALL 24 HR PN DESIRED, 4 HR PN RQR. UNSKED ACFT ARR BTN 0900Z-1400Z++ MAY EXPERIENCE DELAYS FOR CSTMS/AG/IMG INSP.
- ATIS PHONE NUMBER C 253-982-2847. DSN 382-2847. DIGITAL-ATIS, DATA LINK ENABLED.
- FUEL: A++
- CAUTION: 1,000 FT RWY 16-34 IS CONCRETE; RWY IS GROOVED. RWY MRKD WITH WHITE NON-REFLECTIVE 90 FT X 3500 FT VFR DAY TIME ASSAULT LDG ZONE.
- RWY COND CODES (RWYCC) UNAVBL
- VOR OTS UFN
- ALL TWY EDGE LGT AND RWY 16-34 EDGE, CNTRLN, TDZ LGT EQUIPPED WITH NTSD LED FIXTURES MAY NOT BE COMPATIBLE WITH ALL NVDS OR ENHANCED FLIGHT VISION SYSTEMS.
- ONE HR NTC RQR FOR CSTMS.
- HOOK BAK-12B(B) (2450 FT).
- HOOK BAK-12B(B) (1668 FT).
Nearby airports
Weather is live from the Aviation Weather Center; airport facility data is from the FAA NASR (28-day cycle). For planning and education only; always verify against official sources. Open KTCM in a full tool: METAR/TAF decoder, crosswind calculator, sun & night times, or the density altitude calculator. Planning from here? Find the nearest airport with fuel or an approach, or check whether an IFR alternate is required.
About KTCM
McChord Air Force Base (TCM · KTCM) is an airport in Tacoma, WA, at 322 ft MSL. It has 2 runways, the longest 10,108 ft, with a control tower. This page shows live METAR/TAF weather, runway crosswinds, frequencies, navaids, and FAA charts for KTCM, refreshed from the Aviation Weather Center and FAA NASR.
Does KTCM have a control tower?
Yes. McChord Air Force Base has an operating FAA control tower. Check the Comms & NavAids tab for tower and ground frequencies.
What is the longest runway at KTCM?
McChord Air Force Base has 2 runways; the longest is 10,108 ft. See the Runways tab for headings, surface, and lighting.
Where is KTCM?
McChord Air Force Base is in Tacoma, WA, at an elevation of 322 ft MSL. Coordinates: 47.1377, -122.4760.
Fly out of KTCM often?
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