Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and St. Helens, Tasmania, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SYA to HLS:
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- About this route
- SYA Airport Information
- HLS Airport Information
- Facts about SYA
- Facts about HLS
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to HLS
- List of Nearest Airports to HLS
- Map of Furthest Airports from HLS
- List of Furthest Airports from HLS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and St Helens Airport (HLS), St. Helens, Tasmania, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,679 miles (or 10,749 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 Helens 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 Helens Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | HLS / YSTH |
Airport Name: | St Helens Airport |
Location: | St. Helens, Tasmania, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°20'12"S by 148°16'54"E |
Operator/Owner: | Break O'Day Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 158 feet (48 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from HLS |
More Information: | HLS Maps & Info |
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.
- There is also an NDB, TACAN and a VOR on the island.
- The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
- Eareckson Air Station is located on the western tip of Alaska's Aleutian islands near the larger island of Attu, and is located approximately 1500 miles southwest of Anchorage.
- 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.
- 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.
- By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about St Helens Airport (HLS):
- The furthest airport from St Helens Airport (HLS) is Corvo Airport (CVU), which is nearly antipodal to St Helens Airport (meaning St Helens Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Corvo Airport), and is located 12,317 miles (19,823 kilometers) away in Corvo Island, Azores, Portugal.
- Because of St Helens Airport's relatively low elevation of 158 feet, planes can take off or land at St Helens 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.
- St Helens Airport (HLS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to St Helens Airport (HLS) is Launceston Airport (LST), which is located 57 miles (92 kilometers) WSW of HLS.