Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Fort Pierce, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and St. Lucie County International Airport (FPR), Fort Pierce, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,326 miles (or 8,571 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 Eareckson Air Station and St. Lucie County International 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 Eareckson Air Station and St. Lucie County International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• Jurisdiction of Shemya AFB was transferred from the Aerospace Defense Command to the Strategic Air Command when the former was inactivated on 1 October 1979.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• Because of Eareckson Air Station's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at Eareckson Air Station 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.
• The closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• The Korean War brought extensive use by the Military Air Transport Service for the logistical support of Korea and Japan.
• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• Additional aircraft and personnel reductions occurred in 1945 and almost all air bases other than Alexi Point, Shemya and Davis in the Aleutians were reduced to caretaker status.
• The aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,668 miles (17,168 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.

Facts about St. Lucie County International Airport (FPR):

• Runway 10L-28R was completed early 2010 costing $15.3 million, the runway currently has no taxiways to parking therefore making it designated for touch and go operations.
• St. Lucie County International Airport (FPR) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to St. Lucie County International Airport (FPR) is Vero Beach Municipal Airport (VRB), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) NNW of FPR.
• The airport sees frequent use by various aviation flight schools in south Florida, including three based at the airport, for general aviation flight training traffic.
• For the 12-month period ending January 15, 2009, the airport had 196,000 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 537 per day.
• The furthest airport from St. Lucie County International Airport (FPR) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,569 miles (18,619 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The airport continued to evolve as a general aviation facility, and even though two of four runways were decommissioned, one such former runway became the site of the Airport West Commerce Park, while Runway 9/27 was lengthened and improved.
• Because of St. Lucie County International Airport's relatively low elevation of 24 feet, planes can take off or land at St. Lucie County International 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.