Nonstop flight route between Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories, Canada and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from ZFM to SYA:
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- About this route
- ZFM Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about ZFM
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to ZFM
- List of Nearest Airports to ZFM
- Map of Furthest Airports from ZFM
- List of Furthest Airports from ZFM
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fort McPherson Airport (ZFM), Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories, Canada and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,952 miles (or 3,141 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 relatively short distance between Fort McPherson Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ZFM / CZFM |
Airport Name: | Fort McPherson Airport |
Location: | Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories, Canada |
GPS Coordinates: | 67°24'24"N by 134°51'34"W |
Operator/Owner: | Government of the Northwest Territories |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 115 feet (35 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from ZFM |
More Information: | ZFM Maps & Info |
Arrival 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 |
Facts about Fort McPherson Airport (ZFM):
- The closest airport to Fort McPherson Airport (ZFM) is Aklavik/Freddie Carmichael Airport (LAK), which is located 57 miles (91 kilometers) N of ZFM.
- Because of Fort McPherson Airport's relatively low elevation of 115 feet, planes can take off or land at Fort McPherson 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.
- Fort McPherson Airport (ZFM) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Fort McPherson Airport (ZFM) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 9,999 miles (16,092 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (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.
- 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.
- The limited resources assigned to the Eleventh Air Force meant only a limited number of missions could be carried out over the Kuriles.
- 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.
- In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- 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 spring of 1944 brought improving weather and the B-24s and PV-1s to fly more missions over the Kuriles.
- It also became a Strategic Air Command refueling site for B-52 Stratofortress bombers and KC-135 tankers as part of Operation Chrome Dome.