Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Skyros, Greece:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Skyros Island National Airport (SKU), Skyros, Greece would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,846 miles (or 9,408 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 Skyros Island National 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 Skyros Island National 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):

• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• 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.
• On 6 April 1993, Shemya Air Force Base was renamed Eareckson Air Station.
• 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.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• In August 1988, at least one Aries rocket was launched, relating to the Queen Match program, for anti-ballistic missile testing.
• 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 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 Skyros Island National Airport (SKU):

• Skyros Island National Airport (SKU) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Skyros Island National Airport (SKU) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,304 miles (18,192 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Skyros Island National Airport (SKU) is Skiathos Airport ‘Alexandros Papadiamantis’ (JSI), which is located 55 miles (88 kilometers) WNW of SKU.
• In addition to being known as "Skyros Island National Airport", another name for SKU is "Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Σκύρου".
• Because of Skyros Island National Airport's relatively low elevation of 44 feet, planes can take off or land at Skyros Island National 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.